With the 2024 season in the rearview, 2025 and the offseason change are taking the attention for Syracuse football. While there isn't a new head coach and a smaller group of new players, a number of new starters will be taking over.
This is especially seen on the offensive line and it means offensive line coach Dale Williams will have his work cut out for him. Williams is in his second year with the Orange and has years of experience as the Florida Atlantic, Western Kentucky, and Purdue offensive line coach.
After 2024, center J'Onre Reed transferred to USC, and fellow former JuCo athlete and starting left guard Jakob Bradford doesn't look to be using his fifth year. Right tackle Savion Washington, an All-ACC honorable mention alongside Bradford, is also out of eligibility. There's some buzz about right guard Mark Petry, another JuCo returning, but nothing yet is official for the veteran German native.
The only players with starting experience in 2024 are left tackles Da'Metrius Weatherspoon and David Wohlabaugh Jr. Weatherspoon started the first nine games before being benched for Wohlabaugh for the final three regular-season games and the bowl win.
In past years, Enrique Cruz Jr. started 18 games from 2022-2023 at left and right tackle, and three 2023 starts from Joe Cruz at guard. At previous destinations, Wohlabuagh started one game in 2022 at Kentucky, Weatherspoon started 12 at Howard, and Codie Hornsby started 21 games at HBCUs Grambling State and Delaware State.
Dale Williams and the offensive line will be key for Syracuse football to have a strong 2025 season.
The transfer portal isn't providing a retrieve for the Orange either. Syracuse football has added only one player from the offensive line, 6'6" 340-pound tackle Naquil Betrand from Alabama via Texas A&M. Entering his redshirt sophomore season, Betrand has been buried on the depth chart with only one game appearance. It's certainly possible Syracuse adds another offensive lineman in the portal or from a Junior College, but it becomes more unlikely a starting quality player will be added.
It's hard to project the starting lineups before spring and fall camps, but I would say David Wohlabaugh Jr. and Naquil Betrand man the tackle positions. Enrique Cruz could move inside to a guard, where he would play alongside Mark Petry (if he returns). Joe Cruz could also be in position for a starting guard spot, as is Joshua Miller. I think Codie Hornsby, being one of the smaller linemen at 6'3" 322 pounds, could slide into the vacant starting center spot.
On paper, that's a unit of largely backups that has to replace a starting offensive line that wasn't particularly great either. The unit ranked 15th of 17 ACC teams with an average of 3.16 yards per carry. That is despite having a fantastic back in LeQuint Allen. I think the general inability to run was one of the main reasons for Kyle McCord to throw so many times, which worked, but doesn't give much confidence for 2025 without him. Williams has a lot of work to get these guys at a starting caliber level.
In addition to developing the veteran players above, Syracuse has a host of high-ceiling underclassmen. Trevion Mack, Travis Brown-Miller, Vito Shevchenko, and Willie Goodacre join incoming developmental freshmen Djoni Scatliffe, Kardiear Shepherd, Byron Washington, Matthew Hawn, Skylar Harvey, Kahlil Stewart, and Jayden Mann. That's a lot of youth to develop.
Can Dale Williams do it? We'll see this fall and the years to come. If so, given the physical size and/or athleticism of a lot of these players, the offensive line can become one of the strengths of this football team under head coach Fran Brown.