Syracuse Football: 4-star N.J. wide receiver says his interest in ‘Cuse has ‘skyrocketed’

Four-star junior Michael Thomas III from New Jersey, one of the top wide receivers across the country in the 2025 class, recently made a trip to Central New York and says he’s high on Syracuse football following that visit.

Last month, the Orange coaching staff held a couple of junior days, where numerous 2025 recruits were on the SU campus for unofficial visits.

The 6-foot-2, 185-pound Thomas, a top-150 national prospect in his class, was on the Hill for one of those junior days, and he was in attendance at the JMA Wireless Dome as Syracuse basketball stunned Miami on a last-second 3-pointer from sophomore wing Quadir Copeland.

Thomas, a standout junior at Donovan Catholic High School in Toms River, N.J., received a scholarship offer from the ‘Cuse in May of 2023, when Dino Babers was still at the helm of the ‘Cuse program.

Four-star wide receiver Michael Thomas III recently visited Syracuse football.

In early December, former Georgia defensive backs coach Fran Brown took over as the Orange’s head coach. The new Syracuse football passing game coordinator/wide receivers coach is Ross Douglas, who most recently was a receivers coach with the NFL’s New England Patriots.

Per a recent report from SyracuseOnSI publisher Mike McAllister, Thomas met with Douglas on his recent unofficial visit, and the two of them are forging a relationship.

“I can say coach Ross Douglas is the real deal,” Thomas said. “I felt like we connected first time we met.”

After his visit to the Orange, Thomas told McAllister that his interest in Syracuse football “skyrocketed” for him. “Just based on the coaching staff and it’s somewhat close to home.”

Brown and several other ‘Cuse coaches hail from New Jersey. Since taking over the Orange program, Brown and his staff have recruited the Garden State hard, along with the rest of the Northeast region.

While his recruitment likely has a way to go, Thomas has already amassed a ton of offers from a range of high-major programs.

They include Rutgers, Boston College, Duke, Maryland, Michigan, Penn State, West Virginia, Wisconsin, UConn, James Madison, Michigan State, Illinois, Nebraska, Georgia and Pittsburgh, among others, according to recruiting services and Thomas’ X page.

For what it’s worth, when I wrote this article, On3’s recruiting prediction machine had Rutgers in the lead for Thomas, followed by Penn State and then the ‘Cuse.

Both the industry-generated 247Sports Composite and the industry-generated On3 Industry Ranking, at the time of this writing, placed him in the top 200 nationally, the top 25 at wide receiver and the top five in New Jersey.

ESPN, on a national scale, is currently the most bullish on him, ranking Thomas at No. 103 overall, No. 10 at his position and No. 3 in New Jersey within the 2025 class.

Orange coaches are busy these days with their recruiting efforts in the junior cycle, and they appear to be in solid shape with a variety of highly ranked 2025 targets.

On January 27, Syracuse football landed its first verbal commitment in this class, as four-star edge and a top-300 national prospect Sharlandiin Strange out of Cheltenham High School in Wyncote, Pa., picked the ‘Cuse over Penn State, Pittsburgh, Rutgers and Southern California.