Class of 2025 Class of 2025 Recruiting Discussion

[The Viking]

Pretty sure Kevin Johnson came after Qadry Ismail (and that the Missile was a Coach Mac recruit) but the point remains.

Thanks for that. Never roo late to learn
I can only imagine the memory issues yet to come, lol.

 

[Ozone!]

IMO, Fran is doing a great job with recruiting;:the next step is proving he can coach successfully in the ACC. When he wins the majority of his games, he then will be enabled to recruit higher rated players.​

 

[SUDadx2]

The ‘25 class will likely be just about complete in the next few weeks -

Coach Fran certainly appears to have a type of player he wants.

• Big, long offensive linemen (big fish eat little fish).
  • The six OL commits average 6'6" and 315 lbs.
• Big, athletic defensive linemen.
• Long defensive backs with elite speed. Two things you can't coach: length and speed.
  • 4 current commits average 6'2" and all can run.
• Skill players with elite speed.
  • Six current commits run 100 meters in the 10.7-10.8 range.

Personally, I do not think the 2025 is anywhere near complete. We currently have 25 commits, but we only project to lose 20 guys from the current roster: 16 players who will exhaust their eligibility and 4 who could potentially leave early for the NFL (Gadsden, Allen, Ross-Simmons and Chestnut).

25 in and 20 out.

• Do we really anticipate not taking anyone from the portal before the 2025 season?
• And, we would have to purge another 5 players from the current players who will still have eligibility just to make it under the roster limits.

Of course, there will always be a few players who believe the grass is greener elsewhere and there may be a couple who the coaching staff encourage to leave. I think it is more likely we sign 13-20 high school players and 6-10 guys from the portal.

I don't think we are close to done. We will flip some guys who are currently committed elsewhere (certainly if we get off to a good start) and we may lose a few commits (we already have). This staff is going to constantly be looking for an upgrade. They will not ignore the portal if they believe there's a player there who can help us win games.


Go Orange! Enjoy the ride.

 

[Cuse Stock]

Coach Fran certainly appears to have a type of player he wants.

• Big, long offensive linemen (big fish eat little fish).
  • The six OL commits average 6'6" and 315 lbs.
• Big, athletic defensive linemen.
• Long defensive backs with elite speed. Two things you can't coach: length and speed.
  • 4 current commits average 6'2" and all can run.
• Skill players with elite speed.
  • Six current commits run 100 meters in the 10.7-10.8 range.

Personally, I do not think the 2025 is anywhere near complete. We currently have 25 commits, but we only project to lose 20 guys from the current roster: 16 players who will exhaust their eligibility and 4 who could potentially leave early for the NFL (Gadsden, Allen, Ross-Simmons and Chestnut).

25 in and 20 out.

• Do we really anticipate not taking anyone from the portal before the 2025 season?
• And, we would have to purge another 5 players from the current players who will still have eligibility just to make it under the roster limits.

Of course, there will always be a few players who believe the grass is greener elsewhere and there may be a couple who the coaching staff encourage to leave. I think it is more likely we sign 13-20 high school players and 6-10 guys from the portal.

I don't think we are close to done. We will flip some guys who are currently committed elsewhere (certainly if we get off to a good start) and we may lose a few commits (we already have). This staff is going to constantly be looking for an upgrade. They will not ignore the portal if they believe there's a player there who can help us win games.


Go Orange! Enjoy the ride.

Coach Fran certainly appears to have a type of player he wants.

• Big, long offensive linemen (big fish eat little fish).
  • The six OL commits average 6'6" and 315 lbs.
• Big, athletic defensive linemen.
• Long defensive backs with elite speed. Two things you can't coach: length and speed.
  • 4 current commits average 6'2" and all can run.
• Skill players with elite speed.
  • Six current commits run 100 meters in the 10.7-10.8 range.

Personally, I do not think the 2025 is anywhere near complete. We currently have 25 commits, but we only project to lose 20 guys from the current roster: 16 players who will exhaust their eligibility and 4 who could potentially leave early for the NFL (Gadsden, Allen, Ross-Simmons and Chestnut).

25 in and 20 out.

• Do we really anticipate not taking anyone from the portal before the 2025 season?
• And, we would have to purge another 5 players from the current players who will still have eligibility just to make it under the roster limits.

Of course, there will always be a few players who believe the grass is greener elsewhere and there may be a couple who the coaching staff encourage to leave. I think it is more likely we sign 13-20 high school players and 6-10 guys from the portal.

I don't think we are close to done. We will flip some guys who are currently committed elsewhere (certainly if we get off to a good start) and we may lose a few commits (we already have). This staff is going to constantly be looking for an upgrade. They will not ignore the portal if they believe there's a player there who can help us win games.


Go Orange! Enjoy the ride.

Great analysis, our QBs are athletic too, Carney has a 37 inch vertical, ran a verified 4.66 40, 4.28 shuttle, 9 feet 10 inch broad jump, and has some nice PRs in the weight room according to MaxPreps, I can’t find Belin’s numbers but his film shows a lot of athleticism

 

[baggerbob]

Great analysis, our QBs are athletic too, Carney has a 37 inch vertical, ran a verified 4.66 40, 4.28 shuttle, 9 feet 10 inch broad jump, and has some nice PRs in the weight room according to MaxPreps, I can’t find Belin’s numbers but his film shows a lot of athleticism

And the QB who is on a lacrosse scholorship is athletic also.

 

[tep624]

Coach Fran certainly appears to have a type of player he wants.

• Big, long offensive linemen (big fish eat little fish).
  • The six OL commits average 6'6" and 315 lbs.
• Big, athletic defensive linemen.
• Long defensive backs with elite speed. Two things you can't coach: length and speed.
  • 4 current commits average 6'2" and all can run.
• Skill players with elite speed.
  • Six current commits run 100 meters in the 10.7-10.8 range.

Personally, I do not think the 2025 is anywhere near complete. We currently have 25 commits, but we only project to lose 20 guys from the current roster: 16 players who will exhaust their eligibility and 4 who could potentially leave early for the NFL (Gadsden, Allen, Ross-Simmons and Chestnut).

25 in and 20 out.

• Do we really anticipate not taking anyone from the portal before the 2025 season?
• And, we would have to purge another 5 players from the current players who will still have eligibility just to make it under the roster limits.

Of course, there will always be a few players who believe the grass is greener elsewhere and there may be a couple who the coaching staff encourage to leave. I think it is more likely we sign 13-20 high school players and 6-10 guys from the portal.

I don't think we are close to done. We will flip some guys who are currently committed elsewhere (certainly if we get off to a good start) and we may lose a few commits (we already have). This staff is going to constantly be looking for an upgrade. They will not ignore the portal if they believe there's a player there who can help us win games.


Go Orange! Enjoy the ride.

Having a strong season moving into flip season is really going to help.

If Rutgers craps the bed there are a lot of high level NJ recruits committed there right now that we could have open season on.

Our most ready to contribute HS recruits coming out of the spring game were Barnes, Willis and Edwards. All top 250 kids - that’s why I pointed that out to begin with, you need a mix of those kids in every class as well. I think we’ll get there in this class. But if we don’t - we have to honest about it and not just blow it off because it does matter.

 

[baggerbob]

Having a strong season moving into flip season is really going to help.

If Rutgers craps the bed there are a lot of high level NJ recruits committed there right now that we could have open season on.

Our most ready to contribute HS recruits coming out of the spring game were Barnes, Willis and Edwards. All top 250 kids - that’s why I pointed that out to begin with, you need a mix of those kids in every class as well. I think we’ll get there in this class. But if we don’t - we have to honest about it and not just blow it off because it does matter.

This class, half of them are offensive, and defensive linemen, who unless they are absolute studs you don't expect to start year 1 or 2. But you need them with measurables in the pipeline to start by year 3.
We haven't had those kinds of players since the Mac and Coach P years.
That's how to get good and stay good, having the people up front who can control the line of scrimmage.

 

[tep624]

This class, half of them are offensive, and defensive linemen, who unless they are absolute studs you don't expect to start year 1 or 2. But you need them with measurables in the pipeline to start by year 3.
We haven't had those kinds of players since the Mac and Coach P years.
That's how to get good and stay good, having the people up front who can control the line of scrimmage.

Oh I agree - I love what they are doing with the trenches. It’s super hard to compete for the ready to play or RF impact player line recruits, but to get really solid regional types with the 4-8 offer range and the right measurables like we’re getting is exciting.

Also, I really like what they did in the portal. A guy like ‘Spoon that some were ripping apart - I saw the potential on his film (so did money and a few others), and it’s clear the staff is thinking outside the box but not recruiting stiffs.

 

[baggerbob]

Oh I agree - I love what they are doing with the trenches. It’s super hard to compete for the ready to play or RF impact player line recruits, but to get really solid regional types with the 4-8 offer range and the right measurables like we’re getting is exciting.

Also, I really like what they did in the portal. A guy like ‘Spoon that some were ripping apart - I saw the potential on his film (so did money and a few others), and it’s clear the staff is thinking outside the box but not recruiting stiffs.

Fran doesn't want to be good one year, he wants to be good every year. To do that you have to build a foundation up front.
Fran seems to want to be 9 wins minimum, and 10+ most years.
That's how you compete with the big boys.

 

[anomander]

When you look at our class, I think Fran has done the best job of landing regional high level recruits in ages - those 4-8 or 9 P4 offer guys. It would have been nice to see 3-4 top 250 kids at the top of the class for perception and maybe a few less of the diamonds, but that may come into the season as well as Fran has a successful season and flip season starts. It happened last year with Ross/Willis/Barnes/Edwards so why not again this year?

If we’re being completely honest with ourselves this class isn’t as good as last class. With Fran coming in and landing 4 or 5 studs, and flips right off the bat, i guess my expectations were a little higher. We have a solid class, but no headliners. We will probably finish around 50 and for a 27 commit class and counting that’s average at best. I do think there is a huge difference in the level of recruits we have taking OV’s and have us in their top 3, but haven’t been able to seal the deal for one reason or another. We also have a pretty solid class from top to bottom, with only a couple reaches imo, where we possibly could have held the spot for a while longer. The other good thing is most of the guys we got took OV’s to other P4 schools, around or previous level, or better, and we were able to beat them out. I also think we re-established the NE as our recruiting area, which I have always been wanting to do. I think that also factors into ratings, especially kids from NY, and not in NYC. I think we grabbed some really solid guys from CNY and WNY, that just didn’t have the exposure. We’ve shown with Mac, P, and even Marrone you can win with those guys, and usually their ceilings are higher with more room to develop. I like Canadian too, especially those with measurable's. The one thing i am a bit surprised about is not landing a kid in the NJ top 15. I thought for sure, especially after last year, we would have had a couple. I realize Rutgers is giving recruits NIL deals, but that looks like the future unfortunately, and to be honest, we did it with a couple of guys ourselves last year. I would rather use it on retaining guys, but some teams will be able to use for both, which might make it tougher. We also got almost all kids with measureables where they don’t need to add weight to play in a year or 2. For the new defense that is key. Again, this is a solid class, but if you’re comparing it to last years it’s not really close. Go back and look at last years and it really was our best class in decades. I guess that just set my expectations a little higher than they should be. The good thing is we have kids interested, now Fran has to go out there and prove we can win on the field. Not 6-7 wins. To these type of recruits that’s a bad school. You can see in interviews numerous kids mention how Fran is going to turn the program around. They don’t care we won 7 and 6 game and got to 2 bowl games. They expect top 25 or at least winning 8-9 games. This is a perfect schedule and team to go out and produce a huge season that will give Fran the ammo he needs to land even higher level recruits and it evolves from there.

 

[Cusefan69]

Coach Fran certainly appears to have a type of player he wants.

• Big, long offensive linemen (big fish eat little fish).
  • The six OL commits average 6'6" and 315 lbs.
• Big, athletic defensive linemen.
• Long defensive backs with elite speed. Two things you can't coach: length and speed.
  • 4 current commits average 6'2" and all can run.
• Skill players with elite speed.
  • Six current commits run 100 meters in the 10.7-10.8 range.

Personally, I do not think the 2025 is anywhere near complete. We currently have 25 commits, but we only project to lose 20 guys from the current roster: 16 players who will exhaust their eligibility and 4 who could potentially leave early for the NFL (Gadsden, Allen, Ross-Simmons and Chestnut).

25 in and 20 out.

• Do we really anticipate not taking anyone from the portal before the 2025 season?
• And, we would have to purge another 5 players from the current players who will still have eligibility just to make it under the roster limits.

Of course, there will always be a few players who believe the grass is greener elsewhere and there may be a couple who the coaching staff encourage to leave. I think it is more likely we sign 13-20 high school players and 6-10 guys from the portal.

I don't think we are close to done. We will flip some guys who are currently committed elsewhere (certainly if we get off to a good start) and we may lose a few commits (we already have). This staff is going to constantly be looking for an upgrade. They will not ignore the portal if they believe there's a player there who can help us win games.


Go Orange! Enjoy the ride.

Thanks for sharing. Agree on 2025 not being done. Some guys will portal end of Aug once they roll out the 2 deep. Personally I think Fran and Erob will annually hard target a handful of portal guys. I fully expect at the end of 2024, we will see another seasoned QB added who is high end starter for 2025.

 

[baggerbob]

Thanks for sharing. Agree on 2025 not being done. Some guys will portal end of Aug once they roll out the 2 deep. Personally I think Fran and Erob will annually hard target a handful of portal guys. I fully expect at the end of 2024, we will see another seasoned QB added who is high end starter for 2025.

My feeling is that these 2 classes have built the foundation upfront that we haven't seen since the Mac and Coach P days.
This might end up being the best offensive and defensive line group we have ever had in 2 years.

 

[tep624]

If we’re being completely honest with ourselves this class isn’t as good as last class. With Fran coming in and landing 4 or 5 studs, and flips right off the bat, i guess my expectations were a little higher. We have a solid class, but no headliners. We will probably finish around 50 and for a 27 commit class and counting that’s average at best. I do think there is a huge difference in the level of recruits we have taking OV’s and have us in their top 3, but haven’t been able to seal the deal for one reason or another. We also have a pretty solid class from top to bottom, with only a couple reaches imo, where we possibly could have held the spot for a while longer. The other good thing is most of the guys we got took OV’s to other P4 schools, around or previous level, or better, and we were able to beat them out. I also think we re-established the NE as our recruiting area, which I have always been wanting to do. I think that also factors into ratings, especially kids from NY, and not in NYC. I think we grabbed some really solid guys from CNY and WNY, that just didn’t have the exposure. We’ve shown with Mac, P, and even Marrone you can win with those guys, and usually their ceilings are higher with more room to develop. I like Canadian too, especially those with measurable's. The one thing i am a bit surprised about is not landing a kid in the NJ top 15. I thought for sure, especially after last year, we would have had a couple. I realize Rutgers is giving recruits NIL deals, but that looks like the future unfortunately, and to be honest, we did it with a couple of guys ourselves last year. I would rather use it on retaining guys, but some teams will be able to use for both, which might make it tougher. We also got almost all kids with measureables where they don’t need to add weight to play in a year or 2. For the new defense that is key. Again, this is a solid class, but if you’re comparing it to last years it’s not really close. Go back and look at last years and it really was our best class in decades. I guess that just set my expectations a little higher than they should be. The good thing is we have kids interested, now Fran has to go out there and prove we can win on the field. Not 6-7 wins. To these type of recruits that’s a bad school. You can see in interviews numerous kids mention how Fran is going to turn the program around. They don’t care we won 7 and 6 game and got to 2 bowl games. They expect top 25 or at least winning 8-9 games. This is a perfect schedule and team to go out and produce a huge season that will give Fran the ammo he needs to land even higher level recruits and it evolves from there.

Yeah let’s just be honest about what we have without blowing smoke up each others’s asses. There was enough of that during Dino’s era. People talking about Braden Davis being our starting QB this year for example lol.

This is a MUCH better class than anything we’ve seen in recent years, but you’re right about the mix in last year’s class comparatively. But it’s a long way to go to signing day and I’m sure we’ll see some flips. Especially if we have a good season.

 

[IthacaMatt]

The fact we are taking and getting commits so early says a lot to me. These aren’t B list guys. These are ones with the measurables and potential Fran wants. There are perhaps a few guys who you might think are reaches but I don’t think Fran agrees with that. They’re strong takes either because of their measurables or in some cases the area/schools they come from. James is a great example - if you go based on stars and offers, he’s a reach. But his speed is legit.

And let’s be real - Fran knows he has to coach up and develop guys from the northeast. It’s why the portal mattered for this year. Buys an extra year for some guys and if he wins, he’s well suited for some top recruits in ‘26. This class is about a foundation for a few years from now.

Yes, this year's portal haul, and all the early January / February enrollees gave us a lot of time to teach these new guys Fran & Co's system, get then all to know each other, develop some chemistry and new work habits.

The experienced guys from the portal, plus the quality returnees who could have gone pro has given us a season or more for these young guys to develop. Building relationships with Northeast schools again, and getting their top kids. This is huge. This is back to P&D's model of team building. It's very exciting to watch. If this team wins 8 regular season games, the program will take off like a rocket.

 

[IthacaMatt]

If we want to compete for Championships/Playoffs, the recruiting rankings matter. It's been studied to death. The Blue Chip Ratio matters. Top to bottom, recruiting rankings aren't a perfect science (too many players and variables) but the percentage of top talent (4-5 stars) on your roster is basically a perfect science and indicator of whether you can compete for a Championship or not. Basically you need your roster to be made up of ~50+% of those players to have a chance at a title.

I agree. You can get to an 8 win team by recruiting high 3 star players and developing them.

To win 10 games, you need a handful of 4 star players scattered in your lineup.

If you want to compete for championships, you need 2 or 3 of those 5 star guys who are going to be NFL stars.

 

[IthacaMatt]

This class, half of them are offensive, and defensive linemen, who unless they are absolute studs you don't expect to start year 1 or 2. But you need them with measurables in the pipeline to start by year 3.
We haven't had those kinds of players since the Mac and Coach P years.
That's how to get good and stay good, having the people up front who can control the line of scrimmage.

... And lots of them, so losing one or two guys doesn't ruin your whole season.

 

[orange_in_VA]

Yes, this year's portal haul, and all the early January / February enrollees gave us a lot of time to teach these new guys Fran & Co's system, get then all to know each other, develop some chemistry and new work habits.

The experienced guys from the portal, plus the quality returnees who could have gone pro has given us a season or more for these young guys to develop. Building relationships with Northeast schools again, and getting their top kids. This is huge. This is back to P&D's model of team building. It's very exciting to watch. If this team wins 8 regular season games, the program will take off like a rocket.

We need to win big and pull in more talent now. 2025 schedule is brutal

 

[TheCusian]

If we’re being completely honest with ourselves this class isn’t as good as last class. With Fran coming in and landing 4 or 5 studs, and flips right off the bat, i guess my expectations were a little higher. We have a solid class, but no headliners. We will probably finish around 50 and for a 27 commit class and counting that’s average at best. I do think there is a huge difference in the level of recruits we have taking OV’s and have us in their top 3, but haven’t been able to seal the deal for one reason or another. We also have a pretty solid class from top to bottom, with only a couple reaches imo, where we possibly could have held the spot for a while longer. The other good thing is most of the guys we got took OV’s to other P4 schools, around or previous level, or better, and we were able to beat them out. I also think we re-established the NE as our recruiting area, which I have always been wanting to do. I think that also factors into ratings, especially kids from NY, and not in NYC. I think we grabbed some really solid guys from CNY and WNY, that just didn’t have the exposure. We’ve shown with Mac, P, and even Marrone you can win with those guys, and usually their ceilings are higher with more room to develop. I like Canadian too, especially those with measurable's. The one thing i am a bit surprised about is not landing a kid in the NJ top 15. I thought for sure, especially after last year, we would have had a couple. I realize Rutgers is giving recruits NIL deals, but that looks like the future unfortunately, and to be honest, we did it with a couple of guys ourselves last year. I would rather use it on retaining guys, but some teams will be able to use for both, which might make it tougher. We also got almost all kids with measureables where they don’t need to add weight to play in a year or 2. For the new defense that is key. Again, this is a solid class, but if you’re comparing it to last years it’s not really close. Go back and look at last years and it really was our best class in decades. I guess that just set my expectations a little higher than they should be. The good thing is we have kids interested, now Fran has to go out there and prove we can win on the field. Not 6-7 wins. To these type of recruits that’s a bad school. You can see in interviews numerous kids mention how Fran is going to turn the program around. They don’t care we won 7 and 6 game and got to 2 bowl games. They expect top 25 or at least winning 8-9 games. This is a perfect schedule and team to go out and produce a huge season that will give Fran the ammo he needs to land even higher level recruits and it evolves from there.

Good post.

I’m not concerned about Rutgers. They’ll screw it up somehow - prob blowing their wad on recruits w no money for retention.

We need success this season to not only show recruits, but to build up the NIL game at the same time. A sustained and methodical approach.

Fran and co can ID talent and land talent. Just need wins and a bigger war chest. Loading….

 

[FrancoPizza]

So true. Mac focused on NY & NJ as the core of his recruiting plan, and Pasq added the importance of speed a few years later. That's when he got guys like Kevin Johnson and, later, Qadry Ismail.
I know Marrone's been knocked a bit on recruiting on some forums, but it seemed he had a solid plan as well, no?

Ismail came after Kevin Johnson? Someone needs a peanut butter test.

Anyhow. The only thing that matters now is winning 9 games this year. At least 9.

 

[cusefan88]

The floor has been raised compared to Dino. Will take a few years of success to get more high-end guys.

 

[Cusefan69]

The floor has been raised compared to Dino. Will take a few years of success to get more high-end guys.

Caveat would be high end guys as freshman and not transfer. People need to remember (not saying you 88), with portal, recruiting has both the short and long game. Top 250 guys we missed on have relationships with Fran and ERob now. When 35% of those guys transfer, we are back in play with this staff.

 

[cusefan88]

Caveat would be high end guys as freshman and not transfer. People need to remember (not saying you 88), with portal, recruiting has both the short and long game. Top 250 guys we missed on have relationships with Fran and ERob now. When 35% of those guys transfer, we are back in play with this staff.

Striking out on a HS prospect isn't the end of the world because as you said, 1/3 of those will probably be back on the market.

 

[SUDadx2]

If you want to to attract top end talent from high school or the portal a program needs to check a few boxes.

- Win. You need to win games and not just enough to play in any bowl game, but enough to play in a bowl that people actually watch. Ideally, win enough to make the playoffs.

- Coaches who can recruit and who can close. Check. The challenge is going to be to keep them from leaving.

- NIL $. Syracuse appears to have improved significantly in this area, but is it enough to compete for 4 and 5 star talent? The CB who just decommitted from Alabama is probably going to a school with very strong NIL opportunities.

Most of the discussions in this thread are not talking about the need for NIL $. It is still the elephant in the room. Syracuse will not be able to compete without it. These funds need to be replenished every year.

 

[orangefog]

Caveat would be high end guys as freshman and not transfer. People need to remember (not saying you 88), with portal, recruiting has both the short and long game. Top 250 guys we missed on have relationships with Fran and ERob now. When 35% of those guys transfer, we are back in play with this staff.

Rutgers is doing the opposite. They are spending all their NIL on freshmen in a desperate attempt at becoming relevant. But, will they continue that strategy in future classes and risk losing the 4 star recruits once they become viable starters in their 2nd or 3rd year? It’s great to get them as freshmen, but hard to keep them if they came just for the money.

 

[The Viking]

Ismail came after Kevin Johnson? Someone needs a peanut butter test.

Anyhow. The only thing that matters now is winning 9 games this year. At least 9.

Thanks, I was notified earlier. Can't wait till I'm in my 70s - I'm sure memory only gets better, lol.