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Ten Years Ago Today, Syracuse Retired 44 For Some Dumb Reason

It's the 10th Anniversary of the announcement that Syracuse Athletics would retire the legendary number 44. Let's take a look back at why.

While there was a ceremony on November 12, 2005 during a game against the (historically-relevant?) South Florida Bulls, the official announcement that the Syracuse Orange football program would retire the fabled Number 44 came on April 20, 2005. Perhaps it's coincidental that the decision was announced on 4/20 because, in the decade since, a whole lot of Orange fans have been wondering what DOCTOR Gross was smoking when he made the call.