As the Syracuse football team looks to rebuild its roster and depth for 2022, head coach Dino Babers has said he will utilize the transfer portal as well as recruiting. The team saw several players opt out including some who received playing time in 2021 but are looking for more in 2022.
The transfer portal is good and bad for teams. While it does offer players the opportunity to leave if they feel like they belong elsewhere, it also allows coaches to add players already experienced at that level to join and possibly produce right away.
So while the staff is out recruiting high school talents like the 2021 New Jersey Gatorade Player of the Year, they’re also faced with recruiting current college players who can come to Syracuse and get a quality education as well as become an NFL prospect like Cody Roscoe.
So as I look at the players in the transfer portal currently, there are many I feel can contribute. I believe these five for sure would be great additions who at least at the time I’m writing this have not committed anywhere. Some may view them as long shots but I’m just saying these are five who are still available and can contribute if convinced to attend the ‘Cuse.
I’d love to see these five transfer portal players in a Syracuse football uniform.
Jared Verse – Defensive Lineman from University of Albany
When Verse initially announced his intention to transfer, I was immediately begging Syracuse football to offer him. It just so happens that I wasn’t the only one, as justifiably so he has received many offers including from SEC schools and others.
He currently has offers from Tennessee, FSU, Oklahoma, LSU, Auburn, Miami and USC, among others. And while Syracuse at this point might seem like a long shot, having faced him last season, Syracuse knows how talented he is and could help fill a position that lost a lot of experience to graduation. Verse could make an immediate impact on day one. I’d love to see him lining up alongside Caleb Okechukwu on the front line in Orange.
Ivan Pace Jr. – Linebacker from Miami (Ohio) University
While speaking about defensive playmakers and depth, adding Pace to line up along with Mikel Jones, Marlowe Wax and Stefon Thompson would help keep that pressure on quarterbacks. Pace was an All-MAC first-team linebacker who finished in the top 10 in tackles in all of college football. As of now, I don’t think Pace has a Syracuse offer but again this is just a list of players I like and think would be good additions, and Pace is that caliber of player.
Rafiti Ghirmai – Offensive Lineman from University of Texas
Rafiti does have an offer from Syracuse football and is about 6-foot-5, 294 pounds. With Airon Servais graduating, the Orange offensive line will still have Chris Bleich and Matthew Bergeron along with talented young players but could use another big-time player to help add depth and cover for the missing Servais. And I mean burnt Orange to bright Orange is a smooth transition. His intention is to play another season and get a master’s degree which are two things he can do successfully at Syracuse.
Cameron Ward – Quarterback from University of the Incarnate Word
With a new offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach coming to Syracuse in 2022, will they want to add a new quarterback? Both Tommy DeVito and Dillon Markiewicz are transferring and with the passing game struggling at times in 2021, bringing in some competition could be something necessary to help the Orange offense.
As of this writing, Ward does not have a Syracuse offer but according to his personal Twitter feed does have offers from Virginia Tech, Houston, Indiana and Ole Miss, among others. It may be hard to convince him to pick Syracuse football over those options, especially Coach Lane Kiffin at Ole Miss but if a player is worth it, it’s Ward who was a Jerry Rice Award winner (best FCS freshman) and completed 65% of his passes.
Sharod Johnson – Wide Receiver from Syracuse
I really liked Sharod at Syracuse and he made a couple of big catches. And while he announced his intention to transfer from the Orange, with offensive coaches Robert Anae and Jason Beck from Virginia now coming in, maybe he could pull an Andre Szmyt and come back to add depth and experience at WR.
This would give quarterback Garrett Shrader a target he knows and the new staff a player they can convince might get more opportunities in their scheme. Sharod was the only receiver with more than one reception in the Boston College win and maybe with a full spring of practices to work on timing, he could be even more of a threat.