Syracuse recruits built for speed

By Darrell Laurant  |   Thursday, February 08, 2007  |  Comments( 1 )

Syracuse Orange
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This is the first in a series on Big East recruiting.

National signing day just happened to coincide with the worst blizzard of the season in Upstate New York, but now it's too late for Syracuse University's four Florida recruits and lone Californian to change their minds. Besides, the snow will have melted by the start of preseason drills in August ... maybe.

This was coach Greg Robinson's second "real" recruiting year -- he was originally hired in January 2005, which left him scrambling for warm bodies his first hunting season. And at first glance, anyone who watched the Orange struggle last season will notice a yawning gap.

The biggest problem for 4-8 Syracuse in 2006 was an offensive line that could neither pass block nor run block. Quarterback Perry Patterson was assailed by defenders on almost every snap, and the running backs couldn't find holes. Consequently, the Orange wound up next to last in the Big East in passing and last in rushing.

So is the newest list of 26 recruits heavily weighted toward O-line beef? Well, not exactly -- Syracuse recruited one offensive lineman, Josh White of Salisbury, Md.

That's not as bad as it seems, though, because the Orange redshirted a whole herd of guards, tackles and centers last season and returns a sizable group of sophomores and juniors. So Instead of high school linemen, Robinson recruited a new offensive line coach.

The Class of 2007 does address another nagging issue for the Orange -- lack of speed. That was glaringly evident in games against West Virginia, Louisville and South Florida.

With Patterson gone and no one quite sure if rising sophomore Andrew Robinson will be an adequate replacement, Robinson found a couple of intriguing three-star quarterbacks. Cody Catalina is a 6-foot-2, 200-pound pocket passer out of Greensburg, Pa., and Brooklyn product David Legree -- New York City player of the year as a junior -- is 6-5, 210 and mobile. This could be an interesting position battle in the spring.

Syracuse needed another tight end and got Nick Provo of Greenacres, Fla., ranked No. 32 at that position by Rivals.com.

Robinson and his assistants also made good use of a "buddy system" in assembling this class. Four players came from Milford Academy in New Berlin, N.Y., including highly regarded linebackers Antonio Pierce (listed as the No. 12 prep school prospect by Rivals.com) and Romale Tucker, DE Darnell Pratt and 6-3, 205-pound wide receiver Andrey Baskin. Pierce is 6-3, 240 and runs a 4.7 40; Tucker is 6-2, 210 and is listed at 4.5.

Meanwhile, safety Max Suter came along with prep teammate Catalina, and RB Jamere Knox and White were a package.

Knox put up impressive numbers at Wicomico High School -- over 1,700 rushing yards and 33 touchdowns. His 40 time has been recorded as low as 4.38, and he compares himself to Reggie Bush. Unfortunately, Knox's numbers weren't as impressive in the classroom, and he still has to qualify academically. Recruiters might also have been put off by his size (he's listed at 5-10 and 160), but Knox bench presses almost 300 pounds and squats 400.

Two other recruits of note come from Virginia -- LB Chad Battles from Newport News and 6-2, 280-pound DT Bud Tribbey, out of Richmond. Tribbey, who was also pursued by Virginia and Virginia Tech, was described by one scouting service as "stout and disruptive."

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