Syracuse football 3-star CB commit sets official visits to 'Cuse and Big Ten suitor

A Big Ten Conference school is putting on a full-court press to try and flip a Syracuse football 2026 verbal commit.

Three-store cornerback Jaxson Gates, who verbally pledged to the Orange in late November of 2024, has scheduled June official visits to both Michigan State and the 'Cuse, according to recruiting services 247Sports and Rivals.com.

The 6-foot-1, 175-pound Gates, a standout at Damien High School in La Verne, Calif., will officially visit Syracuse football beginning the weekend of June 6. Then, on the weekend starting June 13, he will take an official visit to Michigan State.

Per his X page, since the beginning of 2025, Gates has received newer scholarship offers from teams such as Colorado State, San Jose State, Michigan State, Sacramento State, UNLV, Boise State, Oregon State and San Diego State.

Syracuse football faces competition for 2026 3-star verbal pledge Jaxson Gates.

Gates had an award-winning junior season during the recently completed 2024 campaign at Damien. Last month, during a contact recruiting period where college coaches could make in-person, off-campus visits, Gates was visited by several members of the Orange staff, including head coach Fran Brown.

Gates visited the Hill in late November when Syracuse football beat non-conference foe UConn at the JMA Wireless Dome. Around the time of his verbal commitment to the Orange, Gates said in part to top 247Sports analyst Mike McAllister, "The biggest reason I decided to choose Cuse is because the program is on the rise. Coach Fran has done so much to the program in just one year and with him being the DB coach, I know he can develop me into the best player possible."

Within the 2026 cycle, the industry-generated 247Sports Composite places Gates at No. 822 overall, No. 69 at cornerback and No. 93 in California.

To date, including Gates, the Orange has secured at least nine verbal pledges among high school juniors, including several four-star prospects. The 'Cuse 2026 class currently ranks in the top 15 nationally, per the 247Sports Composite and Rivals.com.

Geographically speaking, Brown and his top-flight staff have done a great job so far landing commitments around the country. Of the team's nine pledges, three are from Florida, two from Delaware and one each from California, New Jersey, Maryland and Pennsylvania.