For some time now, Derrell Smith has been eagerly anticipating the start of the 2009 football season. A season Syracuse’s top returning linebacker hopes will be a fresh start for a unit that was dismal under Greg Robinson last year.

Leading up to the start of August camp, every time the junior ventured to the football meeting room, he felt the same could be said about Derek Hines, a 6-foot-1 JUCO transfer from California. After all, almost every time Smith strolled into the room, he was either joined by, or stumbled across Hines, who seemed to be readily preparing mentally for his likely starting role at weakside linebacker.

But Hines abruptly left the team on Aug. 14, leaving an already depleted group at linebacker in further disarray. With only nine players remaining within the unit, Smith – who had 73 tackles last year – and the rest of the gang are hoping they can weather the lack of depth throughout the season. Aside from Smith, the rest of the remaining linebackers made just four tackles combined last season.

‘You really couldn’t tell he was going to quit, we got along well,’ Smith said. ‘We just came back in the morning, and it was like, ‘Derek quit? Huh? For real?”

Hines, who said he left the team due to a loss of passion for the sport, was the latest among a slew of players to transfer into, out of, or within a linebacker group, which has seen a tremendous amount of turnover since last season. Receiver-turned-linebacker Dan Sheeran transferred to Massachusetts along with starting linebacker Mike Mele. Parker Cantey left the team in spring ball, and linebackers Chad Battles and Brandon Sharpe were both moved to defensive end.

The group that now forms the starting linebacking trio is comprised of players completely new to their roles. Smith, who played some outside linebacker last season, is penciled in as the starter at middle linebacker. Former running back Doug Hogue will man the strongside, and due to Hines’ departure, true freshman E.J. Carter and sophomore Ryan Gillum will battle it out to fill the vacancy.

The chance at the starting job for Carter is surprising, considering where the unheralded recruit from Orlando was mere months ago – a situation Smith can relate with.

‘I wasn’t a big recruit either, so you just come in with a chip on your shoulder,’ Smith said. ‘I think E.J. plays with a chip on his shoulder and is proving that he is worthy of starting.’

Once Hines departed, it was assumed Carter would be given the starting job, but Gillum (who in linebacker coach Dan Conley’s eyes has been the biggest surprise this August), has pushed him. Yet, the competition between the two hasn’t been all that bitter, as the two have formed a tight brother-like relationship since the start of camp.

‘Ryan, man, he’s like a big brother to me, he’s been more helping than anything,’ Carter said. ‘We’re both really competing but in a positive way. We are so hungry right now we don’t care who starts. We just want to compete and make it to a bowl game.’

The two other starters, Smith and Hogue, have formed a tight relationship as well. They each made the move from running back to linebacker – Hogue this year and Smith two years ago..’He sees the little consistent things that I would do when I was at running back, and he kind of teases me because he used to go through that type of thing,’ Hogue said.

‘I know what he’s feeling right now, and we are able to connect because of that,’ Smith said. ‘I mean running backs get all of the glory, but defense wins championships.’

Team chemistry aside, and despite the endless setbacks, the surrogate group at linebacker has seemed to steadily improve and commit to Conley and head coach Doug Marrone’s system.

Hogue especially has developed a newfound confidence under defensive coordinator Scott Shafer’s system.

‘I think after the scrimmage we feel better about Doug Hogue,’ Conley said during the last week of camp. ‘It feels like he’s got a little bit of a swagger going now. I wish like heck I would have had him last year. I don’t know where he’d be today if I had him then.’

Heading into the season-opener against Minnesota on Sept. 5, the group at linebacke, in its entirety doesn’t yet have a distinct swagger, but it has certainly meshed to a point of cohesion. The mentality now, after all of the turmoil, is one of complete unity. Players from senior Mike Stenclik to the freshman Carter realize they will need to sacrifice and play multiple linebacker positions frequently throughout the year.

‘People are saying we have a lack of depth, but I don’t see that as being a problem,’ Stenclik said. ‘There are just more opportunities to step up and play.’

‘We are more focused on being leaders as a whole group, as a group among the team, we strive to be the strongest area of the whole team every day,’ Carter said. ‘Each one of those guys is well capable of filling other roles.’

There is no denying, though, that another setback or injury within the unit would most likely be incurable, as there have simply been too many defections from the unit to seriously rely on the second team as a whole.

‘As long as we stay healthy, I feel good about the guys we have,’ Conley said. ‘But do I wish I had more guys? Yeah.’ Until that first game against the Golden Gophers rolls around, all Smith, Hogue, Carter and company will need to do is open their locker doors to remind themselves of all they have been through and all they hope to accomplish together. For inside it lies what they hope to do this year. As a unit.

Taped up inside each linebacker’s locker will be a list of Syracuse’s schedule. Next to each opponent they will check off who they think they will defeat, and who they don’t. Below the markings, each backer will list out his goals for the year.

It’s the same exact thing former SU head coach Dick MacPherson had Conley do two decades ago.

Said Conley: ‘So I guess after all of this, at the end of the season that’s what they’ll look at to see how far we’ve come.’

aolivero@syr.edu

Published on September 2, 2009 at 12:00 pm