Forecasting the Tight End Position in Syracuse’s new-look Offense

Tight end's took a surprising step forward last season while the rest of the offense stumbled. What can we expect from the position group in OC Sterlin Gilbert's new offense?

Syracuse, NY — Not much went right for the Syracuse air attack in 2019. According to SportsReference.com, Orange quarterbacks averaged only 1.9 touchdowns per game, threw for 240-yards a contest and completed just 60% of their passes. QB Tommy DeVito was sacked more times than anyone else in a Power Five conference (44) and the team followed up an incredible 10-3 2018 season with an intensely sobering 5-7 bludgeoning.

A surprising bright spot peeking through the darkness, however, was the emergence of the tight end position in the passing game. The potent pairing of Aaron Hackett and Luke Benson combined for 381-yards receiving and nine scores on 31 catches. That production was a notable increase from the tight end group in 2018. Hackett and Ravian Piece were only able to see the end zone a total of four times on less than 150-yards receiving.

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The incorporation of the tight end as a legitimate target wasn’t only a distinct demarcation from 2018, it’s uncharacteristic of a Dino Babers offense altogether, going back to his time at Bowling Green.

Year<br>	School<br>	Name	Receptions<br>	Yards	Touchdowns
2014	Bowling Green	Chris Pohlman	2	11	0
2015	Bowling Green	Derek Lee	18	108	3
2016	Syracuse	Cameron MacPherson	5	34	0
2017	Syracuse	Ravian Pierce	29	263	4
2018	Syracuse	Ravian Pierce	16	105	3

Babers is hoping for change, though, and he brought in new offensive coordinator Sterlin Gilbert to make it happen. Tight ends were a non-factor during Gilbert’s lone year as McNeese State head coach in 2019, but they were regular participants during his final season as OC for Southern Florida. Bulls TE Mitchell Wilcox sucked-up 43 passes for a hearty 540-yards receiving in 2018, scoring twice.

Can we expect that caliber of individual performance from anyone in the Orange’s tight end room? Probably not, but the closest contender would be last year’s stand-out Aaron Hackett. Hackett proved himself capable of being a lethal red zone threat, finding pay dirt six different times last season. If there’s anyone who knows the future of the position in Gilbert’s new offense, it’s Hackett.

“I’m not going to say that the offense looks completely different, because it doesn’t,” Hackett said during a virtual press conference on Tuesday. “But there's definitely a lot of new wrinkles and a whole new perspective on things which is helping a lot of guys on our offense.”

One of those guys hopefully benefiting from the new scheme is sophomore TE Luke Benson. Benson burst onto the scene as a freshman, collecting 176-yards and three touchdowns through the air. Hackett says Benson’s presence has forced him to step his game up to the next level.

“I think having Luke in the tight end room has made both of us so much better,” Hackett said. “That daily competition and grind to just kind of learn from each other has really helped both of our games. And we know that if we get on the field at the same time, we can we can do a lot of different things. He pushes me to get better every single day and vice versa. Luke's potential is limitless. He's a really athletic kid. Just seeing how much he's grown from year one year or two makes me really excited for his future.”

Hackett’s development should also approach its pinnacle in 2020, as he enters his final collegiate season. Threatening that evolution, however, was an injury Hackett said he suffered following spring practices. Hackett did not specify the nature of the injury on Tuesday, but he did credit his return to peak form in part to former NFL wide receiver Anquan Boldin.

“The thing that I really appreciate a lot about Anquan Boldin is that when he came up and approached me, he was humble and he was meek,” Hackett said of his summer workouts with the former Baltimore Raven. “From a guy who was a Super Bowl champion, he has the right to have kind of an ego. He was really a great teacher and took his time with me and gave me a different perspective on the game, especially from a receiving standpoint of patience and tempo. A guy like that who stuck around the league for so long and had such a productive career, when when he tells you stuff, you definitely listen.”

Hackett said the areas of technique prioritized by himself and Boldin were efficiency of footwork and separation, two elements that could upgrade a red zone threat into a touchdown machine. That kind of individual improvement can galvanize an entire unit. According to Hackett, the transformation has already begun.

“Being back up here and having camp the last three weeks, I really see the growth. And not just in myself, but in the offense as a whole. The sky’s the limit with this offense. If we can if we can start clicking and gelling the way we need to, I feel like we can we can really do some damage in the ACC.”

Syracuse’s first ACC challenge will be next Saturday against North Carolina as the Orange kick-off the season in Chapel Hill.