Syracuse Football: 3-star Rochester WR transfer commits, 'Cuse receivers room loaded

Syracuse football rising senior quarterback Kyle McCord, a four-star transfer from Ohio State, will have all kinds of weapons at wide receiver, tight end and even running back to throw to in the upcoming 2024 season.

And the Orange's receivers room for the next term just got even stronger with a pledge from a three-star transfer who is originally from the Empire State.

Via his Instagram page, Colorado State sophomore wide receiver Justus Ross-Simmons, who had been in the portal since April 16 per 247Sports, said that he would transfer to the 'Cuse, a stellar pick-up for the Orange. A huge congrats and welcome from 'Cuse Nation to Justus, who is originally from Rochester, N.Y., and will have two seasons of collegiate eligibility left.

The 6-foot-3, 205-pound Ross-Simmons, who was reportedly on the Hill last weekend amid Syracuse football's annual spring game, while in the portal held scholarship offers from college squads such as the Orange, Vanderbilt, USF, Liberty, Coastal Carolina and Georgia State, according to ESPN senior writer Pete Thamel.

In the 2023 stanza for Mountain West Conference member Colorado State, which went 5-7 overall, Ross-Simmons hauled in 45 passes for 724 yards and three scores through the air, according to ESPN data. For those efforts, he received an All-Mountain West honorable-mention nod.

The Syracuse football receivers room just got stronger with a pledge from three-star transfer Justus Ross-Simmons.

Although he hails from Rochester, Ross-Simmons finished up his prep career as a standout for Inglewood High School in Inglewood, Calif., where he was a three-star prospect in the 2022 cycle. In national transfer ratings this off-season, multiple recruiting Web sites have him as three stars, with Rivals.com placing Ross-Simmons at No. 237 overall and the industry-generated On3 Industry Ranking rating him as the No. 59 wide receiver.

The latest transfer-portal window in FBS football opened on April 16 and runs until April 30. So far, Orange coaches have picked up several college transfers during this spring window, including Ross-Simmons, Notre Dame senior cornerback Clarence Lewis and Colorado graduate student Savion Washington, all of whom are high three-star transfer prospects.

Looking ahead to the Syracuse football 2024 season, I'm quite excited about all of the talented targets whom McCord will have at his disposal. This isn't a fully exhaustive list, but among 'Cuse returnees, you've got tight ends Oronde Gadsden II and Dan Villari, along with more traditional wide receivers such as Umari Hatcher, Darrell Gill Jr. and Trebor Pena.

LeQuint Allen Jr., the team's starting running back, is a strong receiver, too. Out of the portal, besides Ross-Simmons, there are two speedy guys who left Georgia for the Orange in three-star junior Jackson Meeks and four-star freshman Yazeed Haynes.

What's more, Syracuse football has numerous receivers within its 2024 high school senior class, such as three-star Ta’Ron Haile of Millville Senior High School in Millville, N.J., three-star Jaylan Hornsby of Winslow Township High School in Atco, N.J., four-star Emanuel Ross of Red Bank Catholic High School in Red Bank, N.J., four-star Jamie Tremble of The Wesleyan School in Peachtree Corners, Ga., and three-star Ja’Meer Thomas of Bennett High School in Buffalo, N.Y.

Allen, as a sophomore in the 2023 season, rushed for more than 1,000 yards. His skills on the ground, coupled with McCord as the signal-caller and all these receivers available, should allow the Orange to put forth an exquisite offense in 2024, although of course we'll have to also see how the squad's offensive line holds up.

When I wrote this column on Thursday night, in national team transfer rankings, Syracuse football was No. 10 overall on the On3 Web site, No. 14 nationally from Rivals.com and No. 25 nationwide per the 247Sports Web site.