To say the Orange has suffered from players decommiting from the program would be an understatement. Last week alone SU lost three players, but that is just the tip of the iceberg.
Over the last few months, many players have backed out of their commitments to SU. So much so, that it has truly become a problem for the Orange. But let’s take a closer look. The Orange had so many early commitments that there were worries about how the team could even fit all the possible recruits under its scholarship restrictions.
When you get so many commitments or reported commitments so early in the process, it is inevitable to have some decommit later on. No, nobody wants to see it happen, and nobody in the Syracuse program would admit that it was always known as a possibility. But as we have seen with Steven Clark and Kevonnis Davis, a program with a better history (Florida) or in a better conference (Oregon State) could really sway a recruit’s opinion when they join the process later on. In most cases, recruits who have decommited from Syracuse have gone on to commit to a bigger program.
While it seems like a problem on the surface, it is irrational to think that this wouldn’t have happened. The Orange had an incredible 27 players committed according to multiple reports, including here on The Fizz. But if that were the case, it would have been nearly impossible for the Orange to keep all of those recruits. Especially with some of the newer targets the Orange have worked on recently, including Jake Pickard, who recently decommited from Wisconsin.
It was only reasonable to think that some of the many committed recruits would decommit. The bigger, stronger programs were always waiting in the wings to make a last minute push. Syracuse found some new targets. Changes to the coaching staff were made.
Posted:  Seth Goldberg
