Diabate finishes time at Syracuse with stellar performance in front of hometown crowd
Andrew Renneisen | Staff Photographer
Syracuse linebacker Siriki Diabate points to the crowd in the Orange's 38-14 win over West Virginia in the Pinstripe Bowl on Saturday. Diabate finished with five tackles in his hometown Bronx.
NEW YORK – For Scott Shafer, Siriki Diabate’s story transcends football. He came from the war-stricken Ivory Coast to the Bronx in 2003, found his way to the football field soon after and eventually earned a scholarship to play at Syracuse.
In his hometown Bronx on Saturday, the Orange linebacker finished with five tackles in Syracuse’s 38-14 win over West Virginia in the Pinstripe Bowl at Yankee Stadium. Diabate, who transferred to SU after two seasons at Nassau Community College, capped off his time at Syracuse with a performance that made his defensive coordinator proud.
“It’s great because Siriki Diabate’s story is what college football’s all about in my opinion,” Shafer said. “It’s, as a coach, it’s an opportunity to coach a young kid surrounded by a bunch of young people with all kinds of different stories, his story’s just so pronounced.”
In the first half, Diabate and fellow linebacker Cam Lynch blitzed WVU quarterback Geno Smith in the end zone for a Syracuse safety that gave the Orange a 5-0 lead.
Diabate came up with another big play in the first half on Saturday when the Mountaineers had a fourth-and-1 at the Syracuse 42. West Virginia elected to go for it, but Diabate burst through the line and wrapped up Mountaineers running back Shawne Alston to prevent the conversion.
Diabate was in the stands for the 2010 Pinstripe Bowl when Syracuse beat Kansas State. He said that since then, he’s wanted to play on the Yankee Stadium field.
When he finally did, he wanted to make the most of the opportunity.
“It’s very cool,” Diabate said. “I remember being in the stands thinking, ‘I wish I could be out there.’ But when I do get my chance I’m going to be the best I can be.”
During the regular season, Diabate was second on the team with 67 tackles. He was a reliable force on the Orange’s defense all season. He proved to the coaching staff during training camp that he could play at middle linebacker, allowing Shafer to move Marquis Spruill from the middle to the strong side.
He backed up that decision throughout the year, especially on Saturday. And Shafer couldn’t have been happier for Diabate.
Said Shafer: “There’s not a better person that I’ve ever coached.”
Published on December 30, 2012 at 12:21 am
Contact Chris: cjiseman@syr.edu | @chris_iseman
