After what many thought was the worst week in the recruiting cycle to date, the Syracuse coaching staff bounced back in a big way.
First, Steven Clark reaffirmed his commitment to SU, deciding to stay with the Orange over the hometown Florida Gators.  Clark announced his decision via twitter.
After Clark, the Orange snagged Jake Pickard, probably the biggest recruit in the class to date.  Pickard, out of New Jersey, selected the Orange after decommitting from the Wisconsin Badgers.  Like Keivonnis Davis left the Orange after George McDonald departed, Pickard decommitted from Wisconsin when head coach Gary Andersen left.  He chose the Orange over dark horse Michigan and Jim Harbaugh, who recently starting showing interest.
Furthermore, the Orange snagged Kenny Carter on Friday, another defensive end out of New Jersey.  Carter is nowhere near the prospect that Pickard or Clark are right now, but he has great size.  At 6-foot-3 and 250 pounds, he still has to grow into his body.
However, late on Saturday night, verbal commitment Dana Levine said hat he was decommitting from the Orange.  He will probably be playing at either Temple or USF for the next four years.  Levine, out of Southern Florida, is probably another product of George McDonald’s departure.
Levine committed to the Orange back in May as a part of a very successful month of recruiting.  While his departure hurts, getting Pickard is a swap that Orange fans should feel confident about.  Levine said that it would be “hard to change his mind,” but clearly saw something to make him do just that.  The SU coaching staff recently visited the defensive end, which makes his decommitment even more puzzling.
Levine started as a two-star prospect, but has since risen to a three-star defensive end.  Nevertheless, the defensive line is well represented in the recruiting class of 2015.  With National Signing Day just four days away, SU has 23 athletes tentatively committed.  They will have two more available slots to fill.
Posted:  Jason Weingold
