Syracuse Football: 'Cuse named finalist for explosive 4-star wide receiver, return man

Vernell Brown III, a 2025 four-star wide receiver and return man who is also a top-250 national prospect in his class, has named a top 11 that includes Syracuse football.

Throughout his recruiting process, the 5-foot-11, 175-pound Brown has collected more than 40 scholarship offers from a bevy of high-major programs.

But now, per his X page, Brown has whittled down his list of contenders to 11 schools, and they are the ‘Cuse, Alabama, Clemson, Florida, Florida State, Louisville, Miami, Ohio State, Stanford, Tennessee and UCF.

In late January, Brown said on X that he had received a scholarship offer from the new Orange coaching staff. Obviously, the competition for him is intense, but it’s encouraging to see the ‘Cuse make Brown’s list cut.

Syracuse football is a finalist for 2025 four-star WR/return man Vernell Brown III.

Brown is a standout at Jones High School in Orlando, Fla. As a junior for Jones in the 2023 season, Brown says that he hauled in 1,404 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns through the air.

In total, he tallied 16 touchdowns and also generated more than 2,000 all-purpose yards.

National recruiting analysts and scouts note that not only is Brown a stellar wide receiver, but he also shines as a kick-off and punt returner.

In an evaluation earlier this month, 247Sports director of scouting Andrew Ivins wrote in part that Brown is a “dynamic athlete with elite short-area quickness and explosive movement patterns. Has impacted the game in all three phases at the prep level and impressed at times as a defensive back, but ceiling appears to be highest as a slot receiver that can generate chunk plays with his run-after-catch capabilities. … Will add plenty of value as a return man.”

According to multiple analysts, Brown has visited all of his 11 finalists, except for the Orange, Louisville and Stanford. As it pertains to the ‘Cuse, this isn’t much of a surprise, since Syracuse football only offered Brown about a month ago.

Let’s see if the Orange coaching staff can get him to the Hill for a visit in the future. John Garcia Jr., a Rivals.com national analyst, wrote in part that Brown “plans to hit the unofficial visit trail hard, with logistics to be worked out in the coming weeks.”

Chad Simmons, the director of recruiting at On3, noted in a piece that Brown “communicates with coaches from his finalists at least a couple times a week. Head coaches from every one of his top programs except for Clemson and Tennessee visited his high school in January.”

When I wrote this column, the industry-generated 247Sports Composite ranked Brown at No. 249 nationally, No. 11 at athlete and No. 35 in Florida within the 2025 cycle.

The industry-generated On3 Industry Ranking had him at No. 310 overall, No. 42 at wide receiver and No. 42 in Florida.

Rivals.com places Brown at No. 216 nationwide, while he checks in at No. 226 overall and No. 26 at wide receiver, according to ESPN.