HopFan16 wrote: ↑Fri Jul 09, 2021 2:20 pm
I will defend Desko and say I don't think it's been super easy to recruit to Syracuse in recent years. 20 years ago he could stand on the program's history and tradition of winning as points in its favor (compared to other schools), but now that's not as much of a selling point. With all due respect to the school and the city of Syracuse, how many reasons are there really for why a kid would go there over UNC, UVA, Duke, or ND?
We've been over this before but the recruiting profiles at most of those other ACC schools are just more enticing in terms of location, academics, etc. Those are the schools he had to recruit against (to say nothing of places like Georgetown, Villanova, Hopkins, Maryland, Penn State, the Ivies, and many others outside the ACC)—and on top of all that stuff, those ACCs also have a more recent history of success. So Cuse's one big argument that used to lure recruits in doesn't have the same value. We talk a lot about how coach X or coach Y is a great recruiter and sure some are better at developing relationships or persuading families than others, but at the end of the day, the school itself does the majority of the recruiting.
When recruits compare institutions and ask themselves what schools they can really see themselves being students at, Cuse probably loses that argument more often than not. I think Cuse is extremely, extremely fortunate Joey Spallina grew up a huge Cuse fan and then helped bring in all these other top recruits because had that not happened I think they'd be staring at a third straight year with zero Under-Armor All-Americans in 2022 with no end in sight. But now with a top recruit in the mix and a new staff they have the opportunity to change perceptions and boost recruiting for the future. That's not something they've had in awhile. Doesn't mean it will happen but at least there's a chance.
I wanted to push back on this a bit, not as a means to blame Desko or anything, but just to defend Syracuse. You're making it sound like a Siberian Outpost, lol.
Tradition - I'm probably going to come off a little pompous here, and I don't mean to. I think you are underselling this selling point. If there are any household names in Lacrosse, I think names like Gait and Powell would be at the top of that list. To any sort of casual fan, I beleive, Syracuse is probably most associated with the sport out of any school. Yes, the brand has taken a hit these last few years, but I still think a large amount of kids enjoy saying that they play for Syracuse. Everyone knows/thinks you are a good player if you say that is where you play, regardless if you are a lacrosse fan or not. You gave a perfect example of how strong the brand is in Spallina, who apparently is a huge Casey Powell fan despite the fact that he wasn't even born while Casey was playing at Syracuse. I don't think that is just "luck".
Also Syracuse spends the most money on lacrosse of any school - $3 million according to a Syracuse.com story. I don't know what that money goes to, but it's got to count for something. They have a very nice and relatively new indoor training facility, an updated locker room, and while the Carrier Dome is not for everyone, it's one of the most unique and iconic stadiums in lacrosse. How many major football stadiums that are used in lacrosse have banners/murals dedicated to the lacrosse team? The Dome does, and I'm sure the players like to be recognized as one of the more important teams on campus. And lastly, they consistently draw the most fans in lacrosse. Again, players like feeling important and Syracuse still values the sport as much as any school out there.
Location - what used to be a benefit for Syracuse has faded, as local Section III lacrosse has declined over the years. In fairness to Desko and the staff, they did branch out their recruiting and got All American caliber kids from Texas, Illinois, Florida, Canada, Maryland, New Jersey and Oregon. I guess for what it is worth, the social life at Syracuse does seem like a selling point as it's ranked as one of the top party schools. Not a tradition metric, but for some kids this is a big selling point. It would be nice for the new staff to create a pipeline to Rochester and get more kids to stay closer to home. I don't know why they've struggled in Western New York, but it still seems like untapped potential.
Academics - no, Syracuse can't measure up to places like the Ivys, or Hopkins or even places like UVA and UNC. But there are plenty of talented players who don't have the grades for those schools. Syracuse also isn't some backwater institution, they have the Newhouse School, the best place for a degree in journalism/media, and they've had plenty of issues with kids who couldn't hack it academically. Best example is that it's well assumed the Thompson went to Albany because they couldn't get into Syracuse. The cost does seem prohibitive for a lot of families, not sure how to defend that. For a long time, in a simplistic way, I thought Syracuse was the place for kids who couldn't get into the more prestigious schools. The Powells got endless flack because they didn't graduate from Syracuse (not even sure if this is true or just an urban legend), and of course Mike was suspended from SU for a fall semester. I don't see them at a place like Cornell or Hopkins. There are more schools to compete with now that there is more talent. Maryland, Denver, Loyola seem like their main competition on an academic level, and obviously those schools have pulled a lot of talent. Long rant but I don't see this as a bad thing for SU, a lot just depends on the kid. And there are exceptions to the rule, Greg Rommel apparently turned down a chance to play quarterback for Ivy League schools and Carter Kempney, a '22 recruit turned down other Ivy League teams to commit to SU.
Lastly, on the Spallina it does seem like a big deal he committed. I don't know how much influence he had personally on other recruits - think it's a bigger deal for his dad Joe, who coaches Team 91. Already a number of Team 91 kids have committed to SU since Spallina made his choice, including Cocammo, Cotes and Sageder. Long Island has long been a desired recruiting hotbed that has seemed out of reach for SU. If the Team 91 pipeline continues that could be a very big deal for the Orange.
And not to nitpick, but in addition to Hiltz who certainly would have been in the UA AA game, it does sound like Kempney would have chosen SU regardless which would certainly have given them a UA AA next year.