Amid all of the controversy following speedy Indiana RB¬†Charles Davis‚Äô fluke commitment to Syracuse last week, one voice shines through: his coach-to-be at Milford Academy. Bill Chaplick has headed the Falcons for 13 straight seasons, and tells The Fizz¬†there’s still a strong chance Davis lands with the Orange. Coach says this was a case of social media getting lost in translation, and maybe putting the cart before the horse.
“Davis is a guy who is currently and will continue to be high on Syracuse’s list of guys to recruit. I don’t get involved with that Twitter and Facebook stuff. It’s all a gossip line if you ask me and it gets those kids in trouble more than it’s worth. If the information didn’t come from me, it doesn’t matter. I deal directly with the coaching staff, and I know where [Davis] stands. If he does well this year, he’ll be an Orange.”
Davis appeared to be the latest¬†to fortify the Falcon-Orange pipeline when he announced his commitment via Twitter. The verbal would later turn out to be void, when he said via text message he was no longer an SU commit. It’s unclear whether SU ever had an official offer to him. But if you believe Chaplick, the Orange is high on the running back and he would still likely land there. Maybe this is a case where Milford will help Davis get his academics in order, and then he can play at SU.
Of course, there’s some details here that even Chaplick’s response can’t answer.¬†Does an actual SU offer exist? Does Davis have any offers outside of his chance to play at Milford? What has Davis been told by Syracuse and his recruiter Tyrone Wheatley? Does the uncertainty from last week complicate that relationship? Why did Davis clearly indicate that he planned to accept an offer verbally?
There are an awful lot of important questions here that can’t just be blamed on a social network.
Regardless of the controversy surrounding CD giving a “ghost verbal” to the Orange, he remains a highly talented back who is still strongly considering playing for the Orange in a year. It could just take one more season in a highly competitive program to refine his skill set so he‚Äôs ready to compete at the BCS level. This could work well for Davis. The extra season of development at Milford last year seems to have helped Ashton Broyld transition smoothly to SU.
Although Davis was given meager ratings by Scout and Rivals, Chaplick believes he is by no means an “under the radar” recruit. The coach only had to see him play once, and ever since then, he has believed that CD has what it takes to be an outstanding ball carrier.
“Coming out of Milford Academy, I think he’ll be a top running back. He’s got the skills to be a great one.”
Chaplick says his philosophy in adding players like Davis is dependent on a winning culture. He identifies guys who can perform at 1A schools.
“My kids are coming out of Milford Academy and they’re accustomed to winning. With my recruiting, I go after kids who are used to winning and who have the winning mentality. Losing isn’t accepted here, and winning is expected. When a coach takes a guy from Milford, he knows he’s getting a polished football player who’s used to winning and is familiar with that pressure on them all of the time.”
Obviously, Chaplick runs a tight ship in New Berlin. It’s helped him funnel an average of 15 kids per year into Division 1A schools. For Syracuse, it has delivered fierce competitors like Myles Davis, Jeremiah Kobena, and more recently “Mr. Do-It-All” Broyld. Chaplick has helped build a very strong pipeline between Milford and the Hill.
“I think that we definitely have a relationship with Syracuse. We’ve put a lot of players through there, even going as far back as R.J. Anderson. These kids are doing really great things up there. It’s a real good relationship. [Milford] is a good stepping-stone for a kid who wants to play at Syracuse. “
Hopefully for SU, Davis is the next player to use that stepping-stone.
Posted: Jake Moskowitz
