Syracuse Football: QB Justin Lamson ‘risk-taker who just makes plays’
By Neil Adler
The strengths and weaknesses of Syracuse football 2021 QB commit Justin Lamson are discussed in a SI All-American evaluation.
At the beginning of July, Justin Lamson, a three-star and top-20 dual-threat quarterback in the 2021 recruiting cycle, committed to Syracuse football.
The decision by the 6-foot-3, 210-pound Lamson, a rising senior at Oak Ridge High School in El Dorado Hills, Calif., to don an Orange uniform over other suitors such as Louisville, Boise State, San Jose State and Wyoming proved huge for the ‘Cuse.
Not only is Lamson one of the premier 2021 dual-threat quarterbacks across the country, but per 247Sports he is also the No. 51 prospect in California, a state known for its vast amount of talented high-school football players.
He received the 2019 All-Metro Player of the Year honors from The Sacramento Bee, and that media outlet ahead of the upcoming term has named Lamson to its pre-season All-Metro squad.
John Garcia Jr., a recruiting analyst with SI All-American, which is the recruiting division of Sports Illustrated, has published an evaluation of Lamson that contains some intriguing information that Orange fanatics will want to check out.
According to Garcia, Lamson possesses “adequate height with developed build, particularly in upper torso and arms. Muscular thighs with room to add mass to trunk and lower half overall.”
As far as his athleticism, Lamson “moves better than he tests, but plays quicker than fast on tape. … Above-average speed in the open field with quick stride.”
"My favorite part of the evaluation has to do with Lamson’s instincts. Here’s what Garcia had to say. “Risk-taker who just makes plays wherever there is green grass. Works well off script and trusts arm with attempts across body, on the move, and even while in the air. Natural runner with good initial moves in the open field, willing to sacrifice body for pylon. Throws with quick release, average arm strength and good timing.”"
Those are the kinds of attributes that will help enable Lamson to thrive on the Hill and prosper in playing Division I football. His running the field well is a particularly important skill-set in the Syracuse football offense, and I dig that he doesn’t shy away from being physical.
Garcia does note that while Lamson is comfortable on the move, he could enhance his consistency in the pocket. That’s not a surprise for a high-school QB prospect.
In his summation, Garcia writes that Lamson is a “bit of a project at the quarterback position but the physical tools to develop into a Power Five starter exist.”
Current ‘Cuse starting quarterback Tommy DeVito is a redshirt junior. Quarterback Drew Gunther, a redshirt freshman walk-on, announced on Aug. 19 via Twitter that he has entered his name into the NCAA transfer portal.
Syracuse football certainly has depth at this position, both on the present roster and as it pertains to future recruits. However, Lamson should have the ability to earn minutes early on in his Orange career.