We should know pretty darn soon whether Syracuse basketball is going to win the recruiting sweepstakes over Villanova transfer Cole Swider, and it appears that Orange coaches are putting on the full-court press for him (no pun intended).
The 6-foot-9 Swider, a junior forward who excels at shooting from beyond the arc, said earlier this week via Twitter that he would enter his name into the NCAA’s transfer portal.
Not long thereafter, analysts and journalists began to divulge which teams are interested in Swider, with one of those squads being the ‘Cuse.
As we previously detailed, Swider does have some familiarity with the Syracuse basketball program, as the Orange coaching staff offered him a scholarship several years ago.
Morey Hershgordon, a sports anchor and reporter with WPRI 12 in East Providence, R.I., tweeted out that the ‘Cuse is among the groups recruiting Swider the hardest.
I’m told these schools are recruiting Villanova transfer Cole Swider the hardest:
— Morey Hershgordon (@MHershgordon) April 2, 2021
1. Syracuse
2. Rutgers
3. Indiana
4. Arizona
Florida, East Carolina and Pittsburgh have also “stepped it up.”
Hershgordon listed the Orange at No. 1, and then Rutgers, Indiana and Arizona in the No. 2 through No. 4 slots. Hershgordon added in his tweet that “Florida, East Carolina and Pittsburgh have also ‘stepped it up.’”
Syracuse basketball would prove a strong fit for Villanova transfer Cole Swider.
With redshirt sophomore Robert Braswell in the transfer portal, sophomore Quincy Guerrier testing the NBA Draft process, and other ‘Cuse forwards possibly also departing the team, Swider would be a huge pick-up for the Orange.
A four-star player in the 2018 recruiting class, Swider got rated No. 44 nationally and No. 9 at power forward in this cycle by the 247Sports Composite.
He attended the St. Andrew’s School in Barrington, R.I., and ultimately decided on the Wildcats over Syracuse basketball, Duke and Xavier.
Swider is expected to have two years of eligibility remaining and could play right away with his new squad, based on the NCAA planning to pass a measure in the near future that would let student-athletes in all collegiate sports transfer once while retaining immediate eligibility.
"Check out what Eric Bossi, the national basketball director for 247Sports, had to say about Swider in a recent article. “Though he has never averaged more than 6.1 points per game during his three seasons at Villanova, Swider does have 6-foot-9 size, shot 40% from three as a junior and will arrive somewhere having been around one of the game’s strongest programs for three seasons.”"