SU signs 22 versatile players to roster

SYRACUSE — The 22 players who signed their national letters of intent to play for Syracuse University football on Wednesday are so versatile one had to be listed simply as “athlete.”

Most of the rest — four offensive linemen, three defensive ends, three defensive backs, two defensive tackles, two wide receivers, two tight ends, a linebacker, quarterback, running back, fullback and kicker — played both sides of the football and could switch positions once they arrive to campus in the fall.

Entering his fourth season as head coach, Doug Marrone is finally at a place where he doesn’t necessarily need to rely on the freshman class to step in at specific positions and win games. He can bring in athletes who he then develops in practice before throwing them into games.

And that’s a nice place to be.

“When your program is doing well, that’s exactly what happens,” Marrone said. “That happened to us a little bit this year.”

That doesn’t mean a fan won’t see a freshman in the starting lineup come September. There’s a good possibility one finds the class darling, Wayne Morgan, on the field.

Morgan is one of two four-star talents, along with tight end Ron Thompson, to sign with the Orange this season. Morgan is 5 feet 11 inches tall, weighs 191 pounds and hails from Brooklyn. As a high school senior, Morgan ranked as the No. 11 safety in the nation by ESPN and was rated the fourth-best player in the state by SuperPrep.

He, too, played both sides and racked up impressive numbers wherever he played. He recorded 45 tackles and an interception in 12 games defensively. He also completed 45 passes for 763 yards at quarterback and rushed for 600 yards and six touchdowns.

“He’s a guy that we’ve been on for longer than any other player,” said Syracuse recruiting coordinator Greg Adkins.

Morgan remained quiet about his final choice until late Tuesday night when he told the New York Post that he would sign with Syracuse. The Orange won out over Connecticut, Penn State, Wisconsin and West Virginia.

That still didn’t convince Adkins, who must have done a little dance when he saw the National Letter of Intent come through the fax machine.

“When the fax papers came in this morning, that’s when you know for sure,” Adkins said. “We’re very happy to get Wayne Morgan.”

As the other NLIs trickled in throughout the morning, Syracuse saw mostly two- and three-star recruits.

The “athlete” of the group is Devante McFarlane, a three-star recruit from Wheatley Heights, according to Rivals.com. He sometimes played quarterback, sometimes wide receiver and was a defensive back.

He simply couldn’t be lumped into a category. That’s not a problem for Marrone, who said that Syracuse roster numbers are up, making getting incoming freshmen game-ready less urgent.

Still, he’s expecting the class to come in and fight for playing time, thus elevating the play of whoever starts on opening day.

“We’re looking to have these players come in and have an impact,” he said. “Competition is the one thing our football team needs. I know that when I have someone right behind me that’s working hard, it’s human nature to want to work harder than that person.”

Marrone should hope so if he expects to stay at Syracuse for the long term. He had Syracuse within one win of becoming bowl eligible last season before dropping five straight games to end the year. He’s been to one bowl game in three seasons and amassed a 16-20 overall record.

“I’m in a volatile profession,” Marrone said. “We’re judged by wins and losses. I know exactly what has to be done.”