Syracuse Football: Preseason accolades piling up for QB Garrett Shrader

I think that Syracuse football starting quarterback Garrett Shrader is in store for a strong 2023 season, assuming that he can remain fully healthy.

Shrader, a transfer from Mississippi State, started several games at quarterback for the Orange in the 2021 campaign and was then the full-time starting signal caller in 2022, when the ‘Cuse went 7-6 overall and reached a bowl game.

However, Shrader has dealt with injuries during his tenure on the Hill. That included missing the recent spring practice after undergoing a procedure for an injury to his right arm, according to SU Athletics.

Garrett Shrader didn’t produce eye-popping statistics a stanza ago, but he did prove one of the more efficient passers both in the Atlantic Coast Conference and across the country.

Assuming he’s at 100 percent over the course of the 2023 term, and with talented offensive coordinator Jason Beck guiding him, Garrett Shrader can put forth a good to great senior year this fall, in my humble opinion. National pundits would seem to agree.

Syracuse football quarterback Garrett Shrader is on a couple of preseason national watch lists.

On Tuesday, Shrader was named to the preseason watch list ahead of the 2023 campaign for this year’s Davey O’Brien Award, which is doled out annually to the top quarterback in college football.

Per a media statement from the Fort Worth, Texas-based Davey O’Brien Foundation, this award’s midseason watch list will get trimmed down to 35 quarterbacks on October 31. Semifinalists will be named on November 14, three finalists will get unveiled on November 28, and the winner will get disclosed on December 7.

I’m not expecting Garrett Shrader to capture the 2023 Davey O’Brien Award, but being on the preseason watch list is an encouraging sign. Not too long ago, he was also named to the preseason watch lists for the 2023 Maxwell Award and the 2023 Wuerffel Trophy.

The Maxwell Award is given out every year to the most outstanding player in the sport. Syracuse football star tight end/wide receiver Oronde Gadsden II is also on the initial watch list for this season’s Maxwell Award.

The Wuerffel Trophy is the sport’s top award for community service. In his career with the Orange, according to SU Athletics, Shrader has participated in a variety of community-focused initiatives in the Central New York region.

On the field, last year, he completed 64.7 percent of his passes, while throwing for 2,640 yards and 17 touchdowns, against just seven interceptions. Shrader also rushed for 453 yards and nine scores on the ground.

In 2022, within the ACC, Garrett Shrader was No. 2 in completion percentage, No. 4 in passing efficiency, No. 5 in passing yards and No. 6 in passing touchdowns.

Around the country, per the NCAA’s Web site, Shrader was No. 33 overall in completion percentage and No. 37 nationally in passing efficiency.

A team captain for the ‘Cuse in 2023, the second season in a row, the 6-foot-4, 225-pound Shrader is already in the top 10 overall in program history in numerous categories, including completions, passing yards, passing efficiency, completion percentage, passing yards per game and touchdown passes.

I’m excited to see what Garrett Shrader, who hails from Charlotte, N.C., will do on the field in the upcoming season, which commences for Syracuse football at home on Saturday, Sept. 2, against fellow Empire State foe Colgate.