Robinson Out as Syracuse Coach

Syracuse University has officially fired Head Coach Greg Robinson. In a move that was a long-time coming and a surprise to no one Robinson was canned after Saturday's 39-14 loss to Connecticut.

Robinson came to SU four years ago after coaching together one of the league's best defensive units as d-coordinator at Texas. There were high hopes that Robinson would come to the school, recruit and coach a tough defense and propel this team over the edge into annual bowl contention - a feat that Paul Pasqualoni had trouble managing in his last few seasons with the team. Paul Pasqualoni, meanwhile, has secured a job as Miami's defensive coordinator this season and is partially responsible for their huge turn around.

Instead, Robinson has gone 9-36 overall and has only managed to beat one decent opponent in his tenure: Louisville in '07 and '08. Everyone, including Robinson, knew that this would be his final season with the team. "I don't think it really comes as a surprise to anyone. It doesn't come as a surprise to me," Robinson said at a news conference Sunday. "I ran out of time. I still see improvement. As always, I'm optimistic, I think with more time I could do better. Obviously, I didn't get it done. That's the bottom line. I understand why the decision was made, so I go from there"

There have been several names batted about amongst the media and fans about who might replace Robinson. Some people think Lane Kiffin would be a good fit for the Orange. He was making strides with the Raiders before he was canned by the maniacal Al Davis. University of Buffalo head coach Turner Gill is another option to take over for Robinson. He's coached an underprivileged, underfunded Buffalo team to bowl contention this season and he's a really good recruiter with ties in the area. Either would be a good candidate in my book.

I really wish Robinson had been more successful, because he was a really nice, down to earth guy, but he just couldn't get the job done. I hope he goes back to his D-coordinator roots and has a good career.