Posted: Mike Couzens
Being at the helm of a college football program, your search for the best recruits across America never ends. The way Doug Marrone was going to attack recruiting was part of the plan since day one Рliterally. Keith Fagan, an assistant football coach at New Rochelle High School and editor of section1recruiting.com, talked to The Fizz about Doug Marrone and what he’s done to reach out to New York State high schools. Fagan also detailed the New York/New Jersey recruiting scene, and what it takes to win a recruit. Here are some excerpts from The FizzCast:
On the allure of Syracuse:
“I think what drew them in originally was the Carrier Dome. I think now and the way Rutgers has developed their football stadium—I don’t think it has the same allure. And (Syracuse) has a tremendous disadvantage because it’s located in the most northern location and there’s a lot of snow on the ground in the wintertime. But I think that it’s important that whoever the head coach is at Syracuse has a tremendous relationship with high school football coaches in this area. I know Greg Schiano has that. I know Randy Edsall has that….When a high school football coach feels tremendously confident in recommending a college or university to that student athlete, it’s gotta be because he has a relationship with that football coach.”
On why SU recruiting suffered under Greg Robinson:
“I just don’t think Coach Robinson did a very good job of reaching out to the high school football coaches. I think he didn’t understand interpersonal relationships. The pro guys don’t have to develop any kind of relationship with college coaches. But that’s not the case from college to high school football. Most of the time, the student athlete that Syracuse is recruiting is being recruited by other schools. So that student athlete has a choice. I think one of the things that helps make that student athlete’s decision, is the relationship that that head coach that’s recruiting him has with his high school coach.”
And on whether he would feel comfortable as a coach sending a recruit to SU today:
“Absolutely. The first thing that Coach Marrone did was send assistants who cover those areas out to the high schools, letting us know that  he cares about us, letting us know that whatever he can do for New York State High School football he would do.”
Fagan also tells the story of how Doug Marrone put his reputation on the line in order to try and help New York State high school football. This is a must listen FizzCast.
