#CuseCamp17 Position Preview: Offensive Line

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Of all the position groups affected by injuries in 2016, none were hit harder than co-offensive coordinator Mike Lynch's unit. The upshot is those who were slotted to be reserves last year gained game experience, while allowing Coach Dino Babers to redshirt the true freshmen and get them acclimated to life in the ACC. As a result, all five starters from last season are back and several redshirt freshmen figure to play prominent roles in 2017.

One of those starters, Aaron Roberts, will miss the 2017 campaign. Roberts started every game at left guard and led the team with 39 knockdown blocks. He suffered a season-ending knee injury during summer conditioning.

Junior tackle Cody Conway believes it will take everyone doing their part to replace Roberts' production.

"The guys with experience are going to have to step up," Conway said. "But we have to keep coming forward as a group and playing together as a unit."

Conway and redshirt senior right tackle Jamar McGloster are the bookends of the SU front five. Conway has appeared in 15 games over his first two seasons, including eight starts a year ago. He logged 699 snaps in 2016 with 20 knockdown blocks. McGloster was a consistent presence as one of two linemen to start all 12 games. He finished second on the Orange with 824 snaps played. The twin towers of Mike Clark and Liam O'Sullivan, who both stand 6-foot-8, are slotted as the backups for Conway and McGloster, respectively.

Redshirt sophomore Evan Adams is expected to man the right guard position, while there are a host of players in the mix to fill Roberts' shoes at left guard. Adams was elevated to the first unit following an injury to Omari Palmer and started the last nine games of 2016. Sam Heckel, Patrick Davis and Colin Byrne have all spent time in preseason camp working in place of Roberts. A native of Waukesha, Wis., Heckel was a member of the travel team while redshirting his first season. Davis enrolled at SU in January after being listed as the No. 3 overall prospect in Canada by ESPN. Byrne, last year's starter at center, is the most experienced of the trio.

The emergence Airon Servais in the spring allowed Lynch to shift Byrne to guard. Another redshirt freshman, Servais was also on the travel squad last year. He arrived in Central New York as the No. 10 prospect out of his home state of Wisconsin. Heckel was charted as Servais' backup before camp. Due to injuries and cross-training, redshirt junior Keaton Darney and redshirt sophomore Andrejas Duerig have also taken reps at center.

The 2017 campaign begins in the Carrier Dome on Friday, Sept. 1 against Central Connecticut State. Season tickets, partial plans and group tickets are on sale now online (Cuse.com/tickets ), by phone (888-DOME-TIX) and at the Carrier Dome Box Office (Gate B). Season tickets start at $125.

Single-game tickets for all home games are also on sale. Tickets start at $25 for non-conference games against Central Connecticut State, Middle Tennessee and Central Michigan, $30 for ACC matchups with Wake Forest and Boston College, $35 for the Oct. 7 Pittsburgh game on Orange Central Weekend, and $45 for the Clemson game on Oct. 13.

For complete coverage of Syracuse football, follow us on Twitter (@CuseFootball), Instagram (@CuseFootball) and like us on Facebook (Syracuse Football).

Syracuse University Athletics

Players Mentioned

Evan Adams

Colin Byrne

Mike Clark

Cody Conway

Keaton Darney

Patrick Davis

Andrejas Duerig

Sam Heckel

Jamar McGloster

Liam O'Sullivan

Omari Palmer

Aaron Roberts

Airon Servais

Related Videos