Syracuse Football: An inside look at SU star quarterback Eric Dungey

Q: When Eric was young what did he want to be when he grew up? What were his goals?

"A: Hahaha. That reminds me of the journal he kept in 1st grade, where he broached the subject quite regularly. He was extremely interested in becoming a professional athlete. But the sport changed, sometimes daily."

Q: So as a future parent and football fanatic I’m constantly engulfed in the football rhetoric of the dangers of the game and the potential effects it could have on my children, were you ever concerned with your son being involved in football?

"A: Not in the sense of him getting hurt, no. We worried about him jumping the barrels into the Willamette River or doing back flips off the bridges over Lake Oswego. But we didn’t “worry” about him getting hurt playing sports. I played sports, his dad played sports, his brother and sister played sports. I believe it must be a certain mindset. As an athlete you cannot compete if you have a fear of getting hurt."

Q: Continuing on that thread how has your son dealt with the pressure and scrutiny of being the face of a program? The good and the bad since being at Syracuse.

"A: His dad warned him in HS to never believe your own press- “you’re never as good as they say, and never as bad as they say.” Eric wants to win. He is very, very…can I stress the word “very” ? focused on helping his team win. He also hates to lose. So, for Eric I think it’s less about his concern about external pressure and scrutiny- and more about harnessing his own internal pressures/scrutiny to the team’s benefit."