Syracuse men’s XC team are your 2015 National Champions

Taking care of business, underdog style.

The men of Syracuse entered the race as underdogs to the 2x defending National Champions of University of Colorado.

Sophomore Justyn Knight was the first of the Orange to cross the finish line, placing 4th overall and earning himself All-American honors (top 40).

Following Justyn’s finish, redshirt sophomore Colin Bennie and 5th year senior Martin Hehir placed 8th and 9th respectively, cementing three Syracuse runners in the top 10.

After the collective effort of the three amigos to cross the line in under 30 minutes, everybody knew Syracuse was going to be hard to beat.

The real question was, would the performances of the Syracuse 4th and 5th runners be sufficient enough to outmatch the dangerous Colorado Five?

The results were finalized and posted on the scoreboard. The Orange had defeated Colorado by a small margin of nine points. The team and fans were ecstatic.

In addition to the Syracuse trio who finished in the top 10, Philo Germano, the 4th member to cross the finish line for the Orange, made up 10 spots in the last 2 kilometers. Many believe it was the result of his efforts in the latter portion of the race which contributed to a win for the Orange.

The phrase “taking care of business” or more commonly referred to by the Syracuse XC team as “TCB” is a phrase that became very popular this past Saturday.

It was adopted into the program after Head Coach Christopher Fox and Assistant Coach Brien Bell took their positions at Syracuse in 2005. Since thenm the acronym has been used as an inspiration tool by the coaches as well as the team as a way to maintain determination and a positive attitude at all times.

TCB has been implemented on every piece of clothing distributed to the team. It has also been permanently implemented on Shawn Wilson, a redshirt sophomore on the team who decided to get a TCB tattoo on his right tricep.

Shawn Wilson taking care of business, tattoo style

The 11-year journey, ending with a national title, was a long one for Coach Fox and Coach Bell. One thing remained clear along the way, no matter what, The Syracuse Cross Country Team will always and forever “TCB.”

When the 10 members of the travel team stepped on the podium after being recognized as the 2015 National Champions this past Saturday, they brought with them an 11th member.

PC: Michael Scott

Ryan Urie, a current resident of San Diego, a 2015 SU graduate and a former decorated member of the Cross Country and Track programs, was recently diagnosed with Leukaemia.

If you look closely at the image below, you can see 5th year senior, Andrew Bennison is holding up an iPhone. The significance however, lies on the screen.

Ryan got the chance to celebrate with his old team over a FaceTime call which had been ongoing throughout the day. Despite his ongoing battle with cancer, he was able to experience what his team had experienced. He was able to feel the excitement and the emotion of his team’s victory.

The Syracuse Orange are your 2015 NCAA National Champions.

The win was a hard fought effort which remained unwavering throughout the three month season.

For the hearts and lives of many associated with the Orange and Blue, the win was ultimately a dream come true.