Coach Fran Brown’s decision to hand out standout jerseys this fall found a natural home in Syracuse’s tight end room.
Four players in that group - David Clement, Noah Meyers, Elijah Washington-Baker and Daunte Bacheyie - earned the recognition during camp, a sign of how much confidence the staff has in the position heading into the Week 1 matchup against New Hampshire.
For Clement, the jerseys are less about individual separation and more about the standard the room has built all offseason.
"You know, it gives us a good sense of pride, in fact, of how we carry our room, you know, the standard is the standard in the room and that just rises every single day," Clement said.
Clement also pushed back on the idea that the four jerseys mean four players are battling for one spot. In his view, the room’s versatility could allow all four to be on the field together.
"(I) see it as we could all be on the field at the same time," Clement said. "You know?
We all could be out there, you know,doing whatever you got to do. It's for other teams to decide what they're going to do with that."
That belief comes from what Clement sees as a real strength in the group this season: depth.
"We have a lot of depth in the room this year," Clement said."You know, we all can play, we all can do everything, you know, you're going to see a lot of us out there."
That kind of depth gives Syracuse offensive coordinator Jeff Nixon more options when the Orange get on the field. Rather than leaning on one main tight end, Syracuse has four players who feel they can make an impact in different ways.
Clement said the coaches’ trust in him played a role in earning his standout jersey, but he also sees that recognition as a challenge to keep matching that belief every day.
"I mean, I just think the coaches believe in what I do," Clement said. "My role is on the team, and, you know, I go out there every single day with, you know, pride in the fact that I'm going to carry out my role. I'm going to go as hard as I can in every single rep."
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