Well the message from the latest Empire Conference results has backed up Goff Rugby Report’s earlier assertion that this conference will be tough to call.

We’re only three weeks in, and every team has lost a game. For Syracuse, the defending champs, that’s good news in that their 3-0 loss to Brockport two weekends ago isn’t the death knell on their repeat hopes they might have thought it was.

Cindy Attanasio photos.

Instead, Syracuse bounced back to beat Stony Brook 34-14 on Long Island, while Binghamton put everyone on notice with a pretty convincing 42-17 dismissal of Colgate - a team that had started strong.

You see how it is. With the top two getting to a final championship game, just about everyone is still in the hunt.

“It’s really strange,” said Syracuse captain Angus Bishop, who helped lead his team to that crucial road win. “You have in your mind how games are going to go, then you go play your game on Saturday, check the other scores, and find out it didn’t go as you expected at all.”

Witness Syracuse bouncing back from a frustrating loss to win on the road.

“We won it in the forwards,” said Bishop, who scored two tries Saturday. “We started kind of slowly, but we finally got into the game, and we started to execute. We have a long way to go, I think, but the work and the patience is starting to pay off.”

Ah yes, patience. Brockport’s defense two weeks ago destroyed the Syracuse players’ patience, and they quickly started to press. All that did was play into Brockport’s hands. As the Hammerhead players panicked, starting tapping penalties they should have kicked, and generally displayed a youthful over-eagerness to win the game RIGHT NOW, they continued to fumble away scoring opportunities and lost 3-0. That was a harsh, difficult lesson, but it’s worth learning.

Looking ahead, Bishop said all of the games in the Empire will be difficult, but whether playing at home or the road, playing a good team or one that’s having a tough time, it’s all about the same time.

“It’s about the preparation,” said the captain. “We prepare the right way, we’ll be alright.”

This weekend Syracuse is at Colgate, while Kings Point (USMMA) visits SUNY Binghmaton. On Sunday, Fordham hosts Brockport.