Before you scream in outrage at the decision to bring Paul Pasqualoni back to Syracuse, there are a few people whom you’ve probably never met that have something to say.

First, there’s Matt Tarullo. He’s a senior and he plays football. He’s darn sure that Pasqualoni is the best man for the job at Syracuse, about as sure as he’s ever been in his life.

Maybe he’s a little biased. Four years ago, Tarullo came into Syracuse as a top 100 football recruit out of Albany. He may have succeeded on the field wherever he went to school. But, he, like so many of his teammates, is leaving with a degree.

Tarullo is a product of the environment at Syracuse. Pasqualoni welcomes his players, watches them grow, then turns them into men. And it’s been that way for 14 years.

Next, there’s David Walker. He’s SU’s young running backs coach who has been the recipient of Pasqualoni’s good will. He’s a good coach and a better man. Walker was a team captain for the Orange in 1993 and led it to the Fiesta Bowl.

Two years after he graduated from Syracuse, he received an offer to coach at his alma mater. He’s been in the same position for 10 years. If Pasqualoni had been fired, Walker might be looking for a job.

Finally, there’s Jill Pasqualoni. She’s the wife of the football coach. While she often keeps a low profile, she was at last night’s press conference, walking her husband to the podium. She learned Sunday that her family of five wouldn’t have to sell its house, that the patriarch wouldn’t have to search for a new job. And through all the rhetoric spewed yesterday from athletic officials and representatives, it was Jill who displayed the most honest moment of the evening. When asked if her husband was relieved when he told her he would stay, she replied with a sigh.

‘Yes.’

Last night’s announcement will probably anger a lot of fans. It’s true, Pasqualoni must be held responsible for the performance of the football team. But if that’s the case, then evaluate him on it. Syracuse is going to a bowl game. It has a winning record for the 12th time in Pasqualoni’s 14 years as head coach. And the Orange just tied for the Big East Championship.

‘I don’t know what else there is,’ Tarullo said. ‘What else can you accomplish?’

The answer, short of a Bowl Championship Series berth, is very little. Pasqualoni delivered a winning team to a city that has been spoiled by success.

‘There’s a lot of lack of loyalty and a lot of cynicism,’ Tarullo said. ‘I don’t even know why.’

Pasqualoni should be commended for advancing to a bowl, not vilified because the bowl wasn’t good enough. Because, most likely, it will never be good enough – not graduating players at high rates, not turning them into men, and certainly not advancing to what some would consider a very pedestrian bowl game.

‘People can criticize,’ Walker said, ‘but if you think, out of all the coaches, I believe he’s number (nine) in winning percentage. What else does he have to do?’

The answer? Nothing. Pasqualoni doesn’t need to do anything more. Not when, to the people who know him best, he’s already accomplished so much.