Earlier this week, there were multiple reports of another SU commit for the Class of 2015 decommitting.This time it was West Lindor. He follows Gerald Robinson, Daiquan Kelly, Doyle Grimes and Davante Davis who have all decommitted from Syracuse.
There has been a common theme, at least between Lindor and Robinson that should be concerning for the SU staff and fans; the kids say the Orange has stopped contacting them.
Whether you want to believe them or dismiss them as high school kids, this should be concerning for the Orange and its fans.
The least you can do when you are recruiting kids is answer them. Even if there is no more use for a guy like Lindor after Trey Dunkelberger committed, give Lindor a call and “advise him” to look elsewhere. Explain the situation. Have Lester get on the phone and explain his system. If Lindor (or any other recruit) feels he still fits in the system, then he should be welcomed to stay.
Now, that may work for the offensive players, and it is possible that the Orange has decided to stop contacting kids instead of rescinding its scholarship—something that doesn’t look good for a program—but the change in offensive system shouldn’t have an effect on defensive players like Robinson, Kelly, Grimes and Davis.
When Robinson decommitted, he also said that he had not been contacted as often by SU. When The Fizz spoke to Robinson and asked about a lack of discussion, he said:
 
“I don’t think it’s any chatter going down. I just think they’ve been going through some things. I’m just gonna stay away from that. I don’t really want to get into that.” 
Whatever “things” the Orange had been through—losing, McDonald’s demotion—there is a reason why you have someone like Eric White on staff. He is “Director of Recruiting” and during the season, there should still be a group of people (led by him) that is reaching out to recruits.
 
If that staff exists, it takes pressure off the coaches, who are understandably busy during the season. But that staff better be doing its job of calling, texting, emailing or whatever other type of communication they use to get in touch with the SU recruits. Just because a kid commits doesn’t mean you can stop talking to him because he is still free to go anywhere else he wants up until National Signing Day in February.
 
This is certainly a problem for the Orange. There is no excuse for not answering a kid. Even if you are no longer interested, at least pick up the phone and explain what is going on a little. Instead, the Orange is left picking up the pieces after yet another decommittment. 
Posted:  Seth Goldberg
4 responses to “Orange Dropping the Ball By Not Calling Recruits Back”
This is just a silly assertion. The idea that Kelley and Davis are in any way the same as Robinson, Lindor or even Grimes, is just plain misinformed and even naive. Kelley was offered by the school he didn’t think would, and truly wanted to go to. Kelley was at PSU trying to impress the coaches right up to the day he announced his commitment to SU. He was holding a spot at what was his “next best thing”. Does that hurt? Yeah, a bit, but the staff should be proud they were the runner up rather than other schools after him like Pitt, Rutgers, and Mich.St. When the NCAA let PSU off the hook entirely for having a depraved culture and molesting children, they once again had more room to steal Syracuse recruits (like Cabinda the year prior). For the record, Kelley just earned his fourth star. Davis, another who earned a fourth star once other programs realized what we had, was a similar situation. The kid believed there would be what he felt were bigger and better opportunities coming. He decommitted. I think he was reluctant to commit all along. Grimes is a prospect who I feel is a bit of a project, and I was never very confident he was a solid commit. That said, he committed to the only school he has VISITED, Marshall. Incidentally, they had a GREAT season, but Doyle must know that success there will still not get him to the playoffs, and success there will only mean someone will hire away his coaches, so he is coming up to Syracuse for a VISIT this weekend with two other teammates, one of whom, Jonathan Crawford, is a target that may have been one reason we moved on from Bubba Robinson. Lets see what happens with that before casting the whole thing down. As for Robinson, and Lindor, well it seems they didn’t fit the needs of the program as well as initially thought. Is that a painful mistake for us as compassionate fans to see? Might it put us in a bad light with recruits? Possibly, but do you really think we didn’t say anything to them and/or their coaches? Robinson’s high school is in fertile recruiting territory. We would not risk trashing our own reputation in a hotbed area in a time of need. Please remember this is one sided. SU and the coaches cannot comment on unsigned recruits, its against NCAA rules. Robinson knows the story and will announce his new choice tonight I believe. I think FAU or UCF. I don’t remember. Give a kid the choice to say “They did me wrong so I moved on” or “They feel I am not what they are looking for, or maybe I’m not good enough” and which do you think they will say, especially knowing the school can’t comment back. Do I think their coaches should have stepped in and said something? Maybe, but he is looking out for his player, and trying to secure him another offer. I don’t blame them.
Before I go I need to comment on the most appalling part of this “story”, which by the way has already been rebuked as false by other sources. Seth, do you really think the Orange should just take kids that aren’t good enough to play just because they thought they were at one point? We shouldn’t try to get the best and perform the best because we made a bad guess in August!!?? That is crazy talk.
I wasn’t trying to say that they are all the same, every recruitment is different because each player is different. I am also not saying the Orange should take kids they don’t think are good enough. Simply saying that if the recruits are in fact telling the truth and the Orange is not answering them, I believe that is a mistake. I think at the very least, the kid(s) deserve to get their call answered and be told, “hey, things have changed.” That is all I was trying to say with this. If the staff– coaches or others– is not answering, that is likely a problem. I also agree with what you said about the kids maybe not being truthful, this is where it really hurts that the schools cannot comment on recruits. If Syracuse could comment, I am sure they would be refuting the reports that are floating around that they have not answered their commits.
Well said Malone,glad to see you back making points that bring up good conversation. I want to take it a step further. Seth the way I look at the McDonald situation is this George McDonald got demoted not fired. Shafer made a decision to move him from OC to WR Coach. If you didn’t notice he was on the sideline the whole season helping Tim Lester sending in the play’s for the game. The local media all have him leaving at the end of the season,well the end of the season is here. I haven’t read anywhere that he’s left town. Have you?
What are you trying to stir up here. McDonald was demoted because he wasn‚Äôt doing the job as OC plain and simple. Instead of focusing on the mailman’s situation why not change your focus and give us some articles on the success that Coach Bobby Acosta is having recruiting the Pa,NJ, NYC,NY area‚Äôs.
I don’t ever remember reading anything about those 4 recruits that came here from Wisconsin(2009) all were on the same team and wanted to commit to the Orange but none of Malone’s coaching staff got off their lazy asses to talk with them. They all ended up committing to Wisconsin. One of those players(RB Melvin Gordon)is in the 2014 Heisman Trophy discussion.
Just knowing that he was ready to commit to the Orange and Malone and staff wouldn’t even talk to them ties my frigging stomach up in knots. And what‚Äôs even worse,you guys didn‚Äôt let us know anything about them even being here. So please get off your high horse and stop writing about George McDonald’s lateral move to coaching the WR‚Äôs. We‚Äôve heard and read enough about it,move on.
Amen!
These guys have been looking for a story and a story line for months. McDonald did a pitiful job and deserved to be..at the least..demoted! The whole recruiting game is ridiculous. An eighteen year old kid justifies a change in “a commitment” and it immediately came down from the mount! It became a story because the Seth’s of the world decided to make it a story. A bunch on oversized ego’s of untested eighteen year old children and we’re to believe Shafer’s Staff is sleeping on the job or worse. Lack the integrity of keeping their “commitments”. It’s a ridiculous game and one more example of how screwed up the NCAA and its policies have become!
Seth..you’re better than this….