Highlights from SU Coach Marrone's Signing Day Debriefing

Doug Marrone gave a presentation at the Carrier Dome last night (before the basketball game? After? During? Who knows?) on the 14 players his staff managed to sign to LOI's on national signing day. Here's what he had to say according to Donnie Webb at the Post Standard:

"Rishard Anderson (DB; 6-0, 180): "He has done a great job here. He was rated the 40th best cornerback prospect by ESPN. He didn't play much his senior year, but we took him off what he did his junior year . . . and he was a tremendous player. We're happy to have this type of athlete coming into our university because academics are important and leadership is important."

Torrey Ball (DE; 6-4, 250): "We battled teams for him with high academic standards. When you talk about junior-college players, you're talking about someone who's at a level of maturity where he can come in and compete."

E.J. Carter (LB; 6-0, 220): "The biggest thing with him is his leadership ability. He came in on his recruiting visit and he tried to gather the class and say, 'Hey, we're going to be the foundation of this football team. We're going to be the leaders on our football team even though we're freshmen.' I was very impressed with him."

Zack Chibane (OL; 6-4, 280): "I go down to New Jersey and I do a clinic. Everyone knows my background in on the offensive line. One of the coaches at the clinic says, 'I saw you took this kid from Paramus High School. You know, I'm just going to tell you I think he's this. I think he's that.' And I said, 'I don't really care what you think.' This kid is a good football player. He's got leadership ability and he's an ex-wrestler. We all know what type of football players these ex-wrestlers are. He's someone who has a chance to compete early for us."

Alec Lemon (WR; 6-1, 175): "When you're looking for a wide receiver, what are you looking for? I'm looking for someone who caught the football. He's someone who caught the football 103 times. This is what we're looking for at the receiver position: Height . . . speed . . . someone who's shown the ability to catch the football."

Charley Loeb (QB; 6-5, 220): "Charley is someone who is 6-foot-5 and 220 pounds. He's one of the first people you want to get off the bus when the other team is looking across the field. We're very excited about him and where he can take our football program with his leadership skills and be able to compete for a starting position."

Dale Peterman (DB; 5-11, 155): "He had one of those big, major schools coming back in on him, trying to take him. But he stuck to his commitment. We're very excited about this player."

Andrew Phillips (OL; 6-5, 260): "Again, local. Just like I said before, I wish we could get 15 kids right around this area so all of a sudden I don't have to wait in airports, I don't have to take three planes, I don't have to fly all over the country. I can get them all right here in this community. This is someone who's going to help us bring our players back out to the community. Andrew will help us bridge that."

Torian Phillips (DB; 5-10. 175): "I'm from New York City. I chose to go to this great university. I wanted to make sure when I first went out that I had gotten a recruit from New York City so that all the other schools know that they're not going to come into this state anymore and take our prospects."

Justin Pugh (OL; 6-5, 275): "Justin held strong to his commitment. I believe in this player. He's someone with great ability and someone I would love, with Coach (Greg) Atkins, to develop into a guy who can compete for a position."

Brandon Sharpe (LB; 6-2, 220): "He was someone who was committed to another university who we were able to sway and convince that this is the best school for him. He's someone with a lot of range who can run. He played defensive end. We're moving him to linebacker. We're looking for great things out of Brandon."

Phillip Thomas (DB; 6-0, 178): "There was another big school trying to come in on him. He's a big hitter. What singled him out is that he can intercept the football and create turnovers. That's what we're looking to do on defense."

Shamarko Thomas (DB; 5-10, 196): "He's another defensive back who can play corner. He's big and physical. That's what we're looking for at that position - people who can hit and get us the football. As an offensive coach, I can't stand it when the other team has the football."

Andrew Tiller (OL; 6-6, 360): "If you're a big guy and you've had trouble staying in shape over the years, this is the guy you want to stand next to when he walks off the bus. You'll feel pretty good about yourself if you put on those extra pounds during the holidays."

Syracuse Still in the Running for #1 RB Prospect

SU is still in the running for #1 ranked all-purpose running back prospect David Oku, according to Rivals.com. It appears as though Oku is leaning towards Tennessee, but there's still a chance he could end up in Syracuse Orange next year. Auburn is also reportedly in the mix. I guess he really wants to see himself in blue or orange at the next level.

If Oku ends up signing with the Orange that would be a huge catch for the coaching staff. He would be this seasons's only 4-star recruit and could be an immediate contributer. Syracuse has had a history of outstanding running backs including Jim Brown, Floyd Little, Ernie Davis, Larry Csonka and more recently guys like Rob Konrad, James Mungro, Walter Reyes and Damien Rhodes.

Curtis Brinkley had a good 2008 season, all things considered, rushing for 1,164 yards and 7 touchdowns on one of the worst D1 football teams. That ain't half bad. Now imagine putting a solid all-purpose running back in that position. Someone who can run hard, pass-block and catch the ball out of the backfield then the offense is looking a bit more potent. If you mix in touches by Antwon Bailey, Curtis Brinkley and Doug Hogue suddenly you have a stacked backfield.

My philosophy is that you build an offense from the ground (game) up. It looks like Marrone and I are on the same page here, because a large number of his commits were offensive linemen. If he can bring Oku into the fold then the ground game has the potential to be much more potent this year. Start by building a dominant run-game, then you can mix QB Charlie Loeb into the system in 2010 or 2011. Let him use his size and accuracy on the short and intermediate routes to complement the running backs. Who knows if it's going to work out like that, but a man can dream, can't he?

Syracuse University Signing Day

Alright folks, I took a short break from the blog, but now I'm back and I'm weighing in on how Syracuse football faired on signing day.

New head coach Doug Marrone had his first opportunity to recruit and he made it clear that his focus was apparently to bring in the best players available, regardless of position:

"A lot of times in recruiting, people talk about filling up needs and taking care of those needs with your recruiting class," Marrone said. "Well, one of the things that we wanted to do is make sure we went out and get the best players we could. We were a little bit limited, obviously, with our scholarship numbers to what we could do. So we went out there and we tried to sign the best football players or the best student-athletes that we could. And in doing so with this class, we felt we've accomplished that."

So how did Marrone and the Orange fair? So far Syracuse has received signed LOI's from 14 players, including a few players coveted by programs like Vandy, Wake Forest, N.C. State, Wisconsin, Miami and Big East rivals South Florida, Rutgers and Louisville.

2009 Class According to ESPN.com:

2009 Class according to Rivals.com:
The class is heavy in defensive backs and offensive linemen - both pretty drastic needs - so it's a good thing they happened to be the best players available. The Orange's 4 three-star recruits isn't mind-blowing, but considering the slump they've been in the last 5 seasons it's a good start. 14 recruitments overall is actually pretty low, but like Coach Marrone said, they were limited by scholarship numbers which has led to the relatively small class.

The Syracuse offense has been dismal the last several seasons and it all starts with the O-Line. Remember when Perry Patterson was getting sacked before he'd even completed his drop? Yeah, that's on line O-line. I've always been of the philosophy that success radiates away from the ball, meaning a strong offensive line will open up holes in the run game and give the QB time to make his reads in the passing game, improving the entire offense. Marrone has a background as an lineman and a line coach, so he understands the value of a solid line. I expect this aspect of the team to improve immensely over the next few seasons.

The Orange brought in 4 offensive lineman, including a much-coveted JUCO transfer Andrew Tiller. Syracuse beat out Miami, S.C. State and Rutgers for Tiller, and he hopefully has the ability to start immediately. Chibane is a solid frosh recruit and should develop into a solid starting tackle. Justin Pugh and home-town hero Andrew Phillips are developmental projects but could push for playing time down the line, most likely as interior linemen.

Syracuse has been plagued by size problems in the defensive front 7 the last few seasons. Really, DT Arthur Jones is the only player with ideal size on the squad. They're going to get a little bit of help from 6-4, 250 pound* JUCO transfer Torrey Ball. He has ideal size, but I'd like to see what he has to contribute before I heap any praise on this addition. The orange only brought in one other D-lineman, 6-2, 210 pound Brandon Sharpe. Sharpe has decent height, but needs to add about 30 pounds of muscle to avoid being pushed around by opposing teams. He's not likely to get a lot of playing time until he bulks up a bit.

Syracuse is adding one linebacker in this class, E.J. Carter. Carter is a high-motor type player, but he's a bit on the small side at 6-0, 213. The good thing for undersized players is that males can keep growing into their early 20's so there's a good chance he could add another inch or two. Even if that doesn't happen he'll be better off if he hits the weights and gains 20 pounds or so.

The DB group is probably the most impressive of this class. Syracuse has been abused on the ground and through the air for the better part of this decade, so any defensive help is appreciated. The recruits all exhibit good size and decent speed. Rishard Anderson leads the group and he was even recruited by teams like Wisconsin, Auburn, Florida and Pitt. Ultimately SU won out in the end. Rishard is projected to be a cornerback in the college ranks, but his speed is a bit of a concern to me. He was clocked at 4.62 in the 40, which is a tad slow for corner, but decent for a safety. He has the size and versatility to play any DB position. Shamarko Thomas, Dale Peterman and Torian Phillips should factor into the scheme in the next couple seasons.

The Orange also added a solid pro-style quarterback in Charlie Loeb. Loeb has good size and 6-4, 218 and is noted for his accuracy in the short-intermediate routes. He pays attention to the intracacies of the position and has a decent touch on the ball. He's not likely to start as a freshman, but might take the field in following seasons.

Hopefully Loeb will develop a raport with incoming receiver Alec Lemon. Lemon has good size at 6-2 and good speed, running a 4.49 40. He's a wiry receiver, similar in stature and speed to recent wideout Taj Smith. He adds a good amount of versatility to the offense since he could be used for kick and punt returns. He also has some experience playing defense and could make an immediate impact on special teams.

*A note on all measurements: I'd take most High School and College measurements with a grain of salt. Taj Smith was listed at 6-4, I'm a humble 6-2. I once passed Taj on the SU campus and I had a solid 1 or 2 inches on him, putting him closer to 6 feet even. That's still pretty tall, but many stats may be exagerated.