Syracuse football gets into recruiting fray for All-American wide receiver/defensive back

Syracuse football coaches have entered the recruitment of one of the top high school prospects in the 2027 class.

This week, the Orange offered a scholarship to talented multi-positional athlete Wesley Winn, who plays high school football on the west coast.

The 5-foot-9, 160-pound Winn, who has family roots in the New York/New Jersey area, disclosed his scholarship offer from the ‘Cuse via his X page.

While he’s only a freshman, Winn has already amassed more than 30 offers from a range of high-major programs, according to his X page and recruiting services.

It’s encouraging that the Orange, led by head coach and ace recruiter Fran Brown, has gotten into the mix for Winn early on, although the ‘Cuse will face steep competition as it tries to prevail for this elite 2027 prospect.

Syracuse football has offered All-American athlete Wesley Winn.

Winn is a standout at Archbishop Riordan High School in San Francisco, where he plays wide receiver, defensive back and also for the program’s special-teams unit.

Per the Hudl Web site, during the 2023 season as a freshman for Archbishop Riordan, Winn caught 33 passes for 356 yards and two scores through the air. On defense, he tallied 21 tackles, one interception and six pass break-ups.

In January, Winn was named by MaxPreps to its 2023 freshman All-America second team on offense. He has also been selected for multiple other showcase events where the top national prospects in the 2027 cycle are invited.

MaxPreps, in its article on the 2023 freshman All-America squads, said of Winn, “Shifty receiver also thrived on defense and special teams.”

Winn’s current offer sheet is both extensive and impressive. On his X page, he has named scholarship offers from schools including Georgia, Washington, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Mississippi State, Arkansas, Washington State, Hawaii, BYU, Florida, Auburn, Colorado, Ole Miss, Michigan, Texas A&M, Miami, Purdue, Florida State, Arizona, Indiana, Michigan State, Maryland, Louisville, UCF, UConn and Grambling State, among many others.

Brown, prior to officially taking over the Syracuse football program in early December of last year, most recently served as the defensive backs coach at Georgia.

His newly assembled staff includes coaches who previously were at schools such as Colorado and Texas A&M, both of which have also offered Winn.

The primary recruiting services have yet to publish their 2027 player rankings, but when they do, I assume that Winn will be rated as either a five-star or a high four-star prospect and within the top 250 around the country, if not higher than that.

To date, Syracuse football coaches have offered scholarships to various high school freshmen, per 247Sports. That being said, the team’s focus has been more on finalizing the 2024 cycle and delving into the 2025 and 2026 classes.

Orange coaches have secured a strong 2024 cycle that includes multiple four-star players at the high school level and via the transfer portal.

In late January, the ‘Cuse landed its first 2025 commitment when four-star edge and top-300 national prospect Sharlandiin Strange of Cheltenham High School in Wyncote, Pa., verbally committed to Syracuse football over Penn State, Pittsburgh, Rutgers and Southern California.

I’m excited that, turning to 2027, the Orange has offered a scholarship to Wesley Winn, who is an exceptional player. Keep an eye out for him to, hopefully, take a visit to the Hill in the future, perhaps later in the spring or this fall.