Syracuse Football: Dino Babers seat isn’t hot, but it has to be warm

Syracuse football head coach Dino Babers should be given the chance to right the ship in 2021.

There’s no other way to slice it than to say that 2020 proved one of the most painful seasons in the history of the Syracuse football program.

The team went 1-10, following last Saturday’s loss at No. 2 Notre Dame. That pushed the Orange’s winless streak to the final eight contests of the fall term. Brutal, to put it mildly.

The ‘Cuse did face an abundance of challenges in 2020, and that has to get noted when discussing the squad’s performance in the recently concluded stanza.

The novel coronavirus pandemic, for one, halted spring practices. Summer work-outs and pre-season camp were altered. Syracuse football entered 2020 with first-year offensive and defensive coordinators, so the obstacles that the Orange had to deal with certainly were extensive.

Additionally, as we’ve documented throughout the fall campaign, the ‘Cuse got stung by multiple player opt-outs at key positions, as well as a plethora of injuries also at critical roster positions.

Now, would all of these hurdles, if avoided, resulted in Syracuse football having a six-, seven- or eight-victory season? Who knows. But the Orange did get dealt a rough hand in 2020, and it also had several encounters where it had an opportunity to prevail but came up just short by a few points.

Syracuse football head coach Dino Babers will return for 2021, although some fans don’t like it.

Because of all the adversity undergone by the ‘Cuse this year, it’s understandable for Syracuse University leaders to say that Babers should get the chance to turn things around in 2021.

Orange athletics director John Wildhack told Nate Mink of Syracuse.com in an article earlier this week that the next term is not a “make-or-break year” for Babers at the helm on the Hill.

"Wildhack said, “The proverbial hot seat, to use your word, it’s already out there. He’s not on the hot seat, so take all that chatter and just eliminate it. Eliminate it. It’s not like ’21 is a make-it-or-break-it year that you have to hit this threshold, if you don’t, you’re gone.”"

The ‘Cuse athletics director did say, however, that he expects “to see significant improvement in our record.” Babers, by the way, is 24–36 overall in his five stanzas in Central New York.

Numerous media reports in recent months have indicated that Babers may have a substantial buyout were he to get fired before his contract is up.

Could that factor into decisions by Syracuse University officials as it pertains to whether Babers stays or is shown the door? Perhaps. I’ve heard from hundreds of Orange fans on social media of late who want Babers let go.

For me, personally, due to everything that happened in this most recent campaign out of his control, I believe that Babers should have an opportunity to get the team back on track in 2021, when a solid recruiting class arrives. Should that not transpire, well, then, it might prove time for a change at head coach.