Since the official announcement that Adrian Autry was hiring Brendan Straughn as an assistant coach to fill out his staff, the Orange have been as active on the recruiting trail as they’ve been in years. As we documented earlier in the week, arguably Syracuse’s top target, Donnie Freeman, has seen multiple recruiting databases predict him to the Orange, a welcome sign for the new era of recruiting under Autry and company. But, Freeman is far from Syracuse’s only target in the 2024 class, and even the 2025 class is getting some love from SU.
Let’s start with Caleb Williams, no not the USC quarterback, but a top-100 four-star prospect in the 2024 class from Washington D.C., right in SU’s recruiting wheelhouse. At 6’7, Williams has the ideal size and length to play at Syracuse and fits right in where the assistant coaches want to target with high school players.
Next is Cam Ward, another wing/big guard-type player from the DMV, but he’s in the class of 2025. Prior to recently, the only player Syracuse had been recruiting in that class was Kiyan Anthony, but Ward is a top-60 player in the class and rated four stars by 247 Sports. And fits exactly what SU is looking for in player archetype and skillset.
Another 2025 prospect Syracuse offered this week was Saddiq White, a four-star prospect who ranks 35th in ESPN’s recruiting rankings for the class. Another long, tall, athletic forward, White stands 6’8 and hails from Charlotte, NC. So, typically a little outside Syracuse’s hotspot, but not out of the ordinary. Another good option for the Orange to go after to boost their roster.
Back to the class of 2024, and this one is someone Syracuse has lots of ties to, Patrick Ngongba II, is from Fairfax, VA, runs with Donnie Freeman on the AAU circuit, and is a four-star, top-90 player according to 247 Sports as 6-10 center. The Orange are spreading their offers around, and every position group is getting in on the action.
Finally, the last player to announce an offer from Syracuse this week was Mikey Lewis, who may not be as highly recruited as the other guys on this list, but he’s not far behind and still a composite four-star prospect on 247 Sports as a 6-3 guard from Colorado. Just another option on the board for the Orange.
So, all this is to showcase that Syracuse is throwing a lot of darts at the board right now, and especially after Autry, Gerry McNamara, and Straughn went to the Nike EYBL showcase in Atlanta last weekend, there are a lot of players who caught SU’s eye and could become members of the Orange in the future. It’ll be very interesting to see how successful the Orange can be, and what, if any, dominos fall first.
