With George Morris II doubtful for Saturday’s matchup against Georgia Tech, Syracuse head coach Scott Shafer said he has no reservations using Prince-Tyson Gulley in the kick return game again this week.

Gulley joined Devante McFarlane on kick returns in Syracuse’s 24-10 win against North Carolina State on Saturday. Gulley brought back his only chance from the end zone to the Syracuse 26-yard line early in the fourth quarter.

“Prince has always been a viable option back there,” Shafer said.

As for the multi-talented freshman H-back Brisly Estime, Shafer said there’s no issue with him being able to catch the ball. He has the skill set to return kicks, but Shafer and offensive coordinator George McDonald want to ease him into his role as an H-Back before thrusting him into the return game.

“The issue is he can’t have too many pots on the stove,” Shafer said.

Shafer added that it could have been the other way around. He, McDonald and Co. could have chosen to hone Estime’s return game from the start of the season, but they considered him more of an asset catching passes.

He said Estime catches the ball really well and that he’s just behind Syracuse punt returner Ritchy Desir in that regard. Estime’s role could expand in the future, but for now he’s solely an H-Back.

Said Shafer: “That was an educated choice by all of us.”

Published on October 17, 2013 at 11:24 am

Contact Trevor: tbhass@syr.edu | @TrevorHass