Syracuse football included in key list cut of 4-star James Johnson, nation's No. 1 DL

The nation's No. 1 defensive lineman in the 2026 class has named a top 10, and Syracuse football made the list.

Fun things.

Per a recent post on X from On3's Hayes Fawcett, consensus four-star junior defensive lineman  James Johnson from Florida has a top 10 of the Orange, Georgia, Florida, Miami, Florida State, Southern California, Colorado, Penn State, UCF and Texas.

Obviously, that's quite a top 10, with numerous heavyweight programs in college football appearing on Johnson's list. The 6-foot-4, 280-pound Johnson is a standout at North Fort Myers High School in North Fort Myers, Fla.

Syracuse football is a strong contender for 4-star DL James Johnson, but competition is fierce.

As I recently noted, when recruiting service On3 updated its 2026 rankings not too long ago, Johnson vaulted to No. 14 around the country, along with the No. 1 defensive lineman and the No. 3 prospect hailing from talent-rich Florida.

In the coming months, 'Cuse head coach Fran Brown and his top-flight staff will welcome Johnson to the Hill twice. Johnson will unofficially visit amid spring practices on March 29 and then take an official visit to Syracuse football from May 30 to June 1, Fawcett and other analysts have reported.

While I'm not seeing any analyst predictions for Johnson at this juncture on recruiting Web sites, top On3 expert Steve Wiltfong recently said on X, "Georgia and Syracuse are setting the pace for North Fort Myers DL James Johnson. Miami, Florida, Penn State, Colorado and USC are some of the others he's high on."

Undeniably, a titan like Georgia, which has won two national titles over the past four years, will prove tough to beat. However, Johnson and numerous other highly ranked 2026 targets are high on Brown, a former defensive backs coach at Georgia, and the Orange after the team went 10-3 this past stanza and finished No. 20 in the Associated Press top-25 poll.

Late last month, in an evaluation, 247Sports director of scouting Andrew Ivins wrote that Johnson is an "explosive defensive tackle with all the fixings to make a living up front. ... (Johnson) projects as a potential difference-maker at the point of attack for a College Football Playoff contender that can be stationed at different spots across the line."

The Sunshine State is a heavy recruiting focus for the 'Cuse coaching staff. Numerous 2025 signees are from Florida, and Syracuse football has landed a handful of verbal pledges from Florida-based prospects in the 2026 and 2027 cycles, including at least three verbal commitments from high school juniors who come from this state.