The world of recruiting in college sports is a crazy one. From the exotic cars, to the hibachi diners and the extravagant photo shoots, from the outside it seems like what matters most is what team has the most swag. But, there’s something else that SU has that can really help with recruiting, especially when it comes to graduate transfers. This secret weapon may be what brought Kyle McCord to Syracuse. It’s the Newhouse Schools sports broadcasting program which is the best in the country.
Athletes like McCord are in a weird spot. They have a ton of name recognition and huge brands. Yet, aren’t guaranteed to make it to the next level and make the money that professional athletes do. So, instead why don’t they learn how to be a member of the media at the nations top communications school. Based on a tweet from the director of the Newhouse Sports Media Center Olivia Stomksi, it seems like that’s what brought McCord in.
The new quarterback isn’t the first SU athlete to take advantage of the Newhouse school. Just in the past year, Polina Shemanova, a star volleyball player for the Orange, used her last year of eligibility at Syracuse so that she could get her master’s at Newhouse. Cole Kirst, who was a standout grad transfer on the men’s lacrosse team last year and now plays professionally also graduated from Newhouse and picked SU largely because of the sports media program. On the diamond, Syracuse softball’s star third basemen Rebecca Clyde announced that she will return for her fifth year to graduate with her master’s degree from Newhouse and go into the journalism field after school.
This program is one that is niche for a select group of players, but can be used to recruit the best of the best, especially graduate students to the 315.
