It’s my last column for the semester, and since I’ll be enjoying beaches, kangaroos and Australia next semester, it’s likely the last you’ll hear from me this year. But for my last hurrah I’d like to round up the suggestions I’ve made this semester into overall changes Syracuse athletics should make.

Not everything needs to be overhauled. Nothing’s wrong with the men’s basketball problem. It should be a top-25 program not only this year, but for years to come with great recruiting classes in store. Carmelo Anthony recently donated $3 million for a new basketball practice center. And the Carrier Dome continues to draw some of the nation’s largest crowds to watch the games.

But everything’s not sunny in the ‘Cuse.

Focusing on football seems to be the right way to improve all Syracuse sports. It is still the machine that drives collegiate athletics revenue. In the second year of Greg Robinson’s tenure, the football team won four games, up three from last year. But those wins weren’t against D-I powers. They were against Wyoming, Miami (Ohio), Illinois and Connecticut. The team didn’t improve throughout the year. In fact, it regressed to last year’s form at times down the stretch. Attendance at games dipped to basketball-like crowds.

So how should the athletic department – led by third-year Director of Athletics Daryl Gross – deal with the situation?

Granted, it takes three to five years to overhaul the program, bring in recruits and make the team his own, but I was disappointed with SU’s showing this season. With the amount of money Robinson is earning (nearly double the base salary of Rutgers’ Greg Schiano), some serious development is necessary next year to prove he’s the captain who’ll steer the ship in the right direction. I know he needs his own recruits, and I’m willing to give him that time, but it’s not as if he was left with D-II players these past two years. This year, Syracuse ranked 110th in total offense and 107th in total defense out of 119 teams.

The department should support Robinson but not give him a golden pass for more than the next two or three seasons. Although another coaching change could break the fluidity and confidence of the fan base, SU cannot afford to decline or stay in the cellar as teams in the Big East like Rutgers, South Florida and Cincinnati are improving rapidly.

So how should SU get back on the winning track in the next few years?

There is no silver bullet. But how about marketing more heavily to fans in surrounding central and western New York? There are a lot of football fans in the state and no other major D-I football schools. If the games could be televised more frequently in those areas, and if Syracuse drew fans from the areas, attendance and attention could increase. And so could a rekindling of the tradition of growing up as a Syracuse fan, which might help bring loyalty to a school with some disloyal fans.

Building a better collegiate atmosphere to attract more skilled recruits would also help. Here at Syracuse, fans sit on their hands when the fight song is played, instead of clapping, there isn’t as much tailgating, excitement or pregame vibe outside the Dome. Now, this doesn’t change overnight. But if it could be improved, recruits would be attracted to the sense that football is a big deal here.

If I were a recruit, I’d probably only come to Syracuse to play right away or get a good education. Play in front of 35,000 fans in an atmosphere that lacks pride or tradition, or play before 100,000 diehards at Michigan? Not too hard of a decision, for me at least.

Gross deserves credit for the Quad walk, FieldTurf and sprucing up the Dome and Manley – he’s definitely built a strong base. From there, the best way to solve the problem is to make stronger efforts in marketing the team and the university. The billboard in Times Square and a contract with 1050 ESPN Radio in New York help, but the push to make Syracuse New York’s team needs to continue.

Other than marketing and improving the atmosphere, a solution is to continue to develop downtown Syracuse. Not all her ideas are wildly popular, but Nancy Cantor should keep trying to turn around the city of Syracuse. If downtown continues to improve and become more exciting, it will attract recruits and fans to a more accessible and vibrant city. And of course, improving downtown is so important for things other than sports.

There were other various suggestions I heard at the basketball game Saturday. Jared Cohen, a senior marketing and entrepreneurship major, rattled off a few ideas. If the student section was more visible during SU basketball games, it would be easier to see the excitement at the Dome, which is tough to sense on TV, he said.

‘Here we have the biggest crowds continuously, but people can’t see how great that is,’ Cohen said. ‘Here we have 18 people in the front row, that’s completely unacceptable for a school so highly ranked.’

It would be challenging to fix because of season ticket holders and the revenue gained from sideline seating, but Cohen’s idea is a legitimate one that should be talked about within the department. Excitement at basketball games can hook recruits not only for Jim Boeheim, but for football, lacrosse and other sports as well.

I’m not ranking these issues above other problems on campus that are more pressing. But some attention does need to be paid to athletics, if you’d like to see SU’s teams improve. I don’t expect to see Greg Robinson’s team in the Rose Bowl when I return for fall semester next year, but I do see these ideas as a small step forward on the path to improvement.