Spring Break
The Daily OrangeFB | Despite low ranking, Marrone confident in 1st recruiting class
By Tyler Dunne
Posted: 2/5/09, 3:36 AM EST Section: Sports
The day Scott Shafer was hired as SU's defensive coordinator, he called Ursuline (Ohio) head coach Dan Reardon with a scholarship offer for Dale Peterman. The cornerback committed on Jan. 25. And on the night before signing day, Syracuse needed to talk Peterman into staying after Michigan swooped in with one last charge.
Another school tried to steal one of Doug Marrone's recruits on signing day eve, but Marrone said that's what's fun about recruiting.
"I was telling our coaches," Marrone said at his press conference Wednesday. "This is great, this is what you want. You want people to come back in on some of your recruits. It makes you feel better about your recruits and that you've gotten the right players."
Hours after 14 commits officially signed letters of intent, Marrone could finally crack a smile and half-joke about the ones that almost got away. Despite Marrone's optimism, the Orange's recruiting class ranks 116th in the nation and features only two recruits above a two-star rating, according to Rivals.com.
Marrone didn't base his recruiting on holes in the current roster. For about 28 minutes Wednesday, Marrone described how a pursuit for overall talent trumped position-filling.
"A lot of times in recruiting, people talk about filling out needs and taking care of those needs with your recruiting class," Marrone said. "One of the things we wanted to do was make sure we went out and got the best players we could."
And hang onto them at the eleventh hour.
Peterman, who set a school record with five non-offensive touchdowns at Ursuline, wasn't the only recruit to nearly slip out of Marrone's grasp. SU also prevented Florida State from getting an official visit from cornerback Phillip Thomas and the Orange ousted Rutgers.
That's what excites Marrone. After managing to snatch multiple prospects that had committed or received offers from fellow Big East schools, Syracuse fended off late rallies.
"I look at recruiting as another win-loss - it's you against someone else. It's a competitive situation and I do a better job of selling our program than a coach at another school."
Another school tried to steal one of Doug Marrone's recruits on signing day eve, but Marrone said that's what's fun about recruiting.
"I was telling our coaches," Marrone said at his press conference Wednesday. "This is great, this is what you want. You want people to come back in on some of your recruits. It makes you feel better about your recruits and that you've gotten the right players."
Hours after 14 commits officially signed letters of intent, Marrone could finally crack a smile and half-joke about the ones that almost got away. Despite Marrone's optimism, the Orange's recruiting class ranks 116th in the nation and features only two recruits above a two-star rating, according to Rivals.com.
Marrone didn't base his recruiting on holes in the current roster. For about 28 minutes Wednesday, Marrone described how a pursuit for overall talent trumped position-filling.
"A lot of times in recruiting, people talk about filling out needs and taking care of those needs with your recruiting class," Marrone said. "One of the things we wanted to do was make sure we went out and got the best players we could."
And hang onto them at the eleventh hour.
Peterman, who set a school record with five non-offensive touchdowns at Ursuline, wasn't the only recruit to nearly slip out of Marrone's grasp. SU also prevented Florida State from getting an official visit from cornerback Phillip Thomas and the Orange ousted Rutgers.
That's what excites Marrone. After managing to snatch multiple prospects that had committed or received offers from fellow Big East schools, Syracuse fended off late rallies.
"I look at recruiting as another win-loss - it's you against someone else. It's a competitive situation and I do a better job of selling our program than a coach at another school."
Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
LB
posted 2/05/09 @ 4:20 PM EST
Lots of good stuff going on here. Thanks for the report!
Post a Comment