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Syracuse lands a commitment from three-star athlete Sean Riley
4:20 PM
Sean Riley will be viewed by some as undersized without the ideal stature for a division one receiver. But he can fly, is electric in the open field, brings dynamic versatility and flat out makes plays. The Harbor City (Calif.) Narbonne High product took an official visit to
Syracuse over the weekend and decided to commit to the Orange before leaving campus.
"An explosive running back who can play in the slot and will be a dangerous return man," . . . . . Recruiting Analyst Greg Biggins said. "He's very quick and can hit his top end speed after just a few strides. He has a lot of wiggle, can make multiple defenders miss in the open field and shows great balance in being able to take a hit, bounce off and keep going.
"He has extremely quick feet, especially laterally and can stop and start and change direction as good as any back in the area."
Riley will come to Syracuse with the opportunity to play some receiver, some running back and also be a factor on special teams. That type of versatility combined with playmaking ability is a perfect fit for what new head coach
Dino Babers wants to do with the Orange. He put up over 2,000 all-purpose yards as a senior.
Syracuse is still in the market for wide receivers in 2016, and Riley's commitment does not impact that. He will likely play the slot and some running back, where as players like four-star
Desmond Fitzpatrick and three-star
Malik Harrison are viewed as outside guys. They are still very much priorities for the Orange.
Fitzpatrick visits Syracuse the weekend of the 22nd, Harrison the 29th.
Despite being committed to Arizona for some time, Riley was looking around. The Wildcats asked him to greyshirt, meaning he would not arrive until the semester after the rest of the class. This was not received well by Riley or the folks at Narbonne High, and Syracuse become the benefactor of that situation.
Also of note, Narbonne's offensive coordinator is former NFL tight end Brandon Manumaleuna, who payed for Babers at Arizona. That connection helped the Orange get involved with Riley and his Narbonne teammates.