Two years ago, Ian McIntyre received a call from Daryl Gross.

Syracuse’s director of athletics informed the head coach – who was in Akron, Ohio, for the University of Akron Tournament – that SU was leaving the Big East for the Atlantic Coast Conference in 2013.

Now, the Big East posters throughout SU Soccer Stadium have been replaced with ACC banners. The transition into the new league has begun, but the new phase officially kicks off Friday.

“It’s different, for sure,” said goalkeeper Alex Bono. “It’s exciting, nerve-wracking, all at the same time.”

The No. 17 Orange (2-0) embarks into a new era when it travels to Blacksburg, Va., to face Virginia Tech (1-1) at 7:30 p.m. Friday in SU’s first-ever ACC matchup. SU formally joined the new league July 1.

“It’s a new chapter in SU Athletics,” McIntyre said. “It’s a new chapter in the history of our program. Come Friday night, I’m sure we’ll fully understand and appreciate the gravity of the game.”

In moving to the ACC, Syracuse becomes part of what many consider the strongest men’s soccer conference in the country. The ACC has won five of the last eight men’s soccer national championships.

The SU fan base, McIntyre said, is especially excited to watch the Orange host new opponents such as Maryland, North Carolina State and Clemson.

“How you become better is playing against the best opposition you can,” McIntyre said. “To have these caliber teams coming to town is a real exciting opportunity to watch some high-level soccer.”

By switching into the ACC, the Orange believes the more demanding competition will help the program make its next step.
After finishing 3-12-1 in 2011, SU bounced back last year with a 14-6-1, program record-setting season.

“Last year in the Big East, we proved ourselves,” defender Tyler Hilliard said. “The ACC is obviously the next step up. As Mac likes to say, we’re playing with the big boys now.”

For Hilliard, an Atlanta native, and Nick Perea, a Florida product, SU’s conference realignment is something of a “homecoming,” Hilliard said. Syracuse’s new in-conference schedule includes road games to the Southern states, giving Hilliard and Perea’s families the opportunity to watch them play.

It also allows for Hilliard and Perea to compete against friends who play for other ACC teams, such as Clemson, North Carolina and North Carolina State.

The Big East, McIntyre said, was what attracted him to SU and it was a “fantastic soccer conference” for the Orange. Each Big East team played differently from the next and presented SU the challenge of a variety in styles of play. McIntyre expects the diversity to be no different in the ACC.

But there is much that sets the ACC apart from the Big East. McIntyre listed the quality of the facilities, support systems and recruiting abilities as some factors that make the ACC a stronger league than the Big East.

And then there’s the on-field success.

“If you go through the number of national championships, the number of players of the year, number of players going to the pro ranks, the coaches of the year in the ACC, it’s just amazing,” McIntyre said. “I think players and student-athletes want to play with and play against the best.

“The ACC is a wonderful opportunity for us to really test ourselves and that starts Friday.”

Published on September 5, 2013 at 1:00 am

Contact Phil: pmdabbra@syr.edu | @PhilDAbb