Syracuse Football: It's flip recruiting season; Fran Brown, his staff are crushing it

As Syracuse football prepares to host No. 6 Miami on Saturday afternoon at the JMA Wireless Dome, and the early signing period for 2025 prospects arrives on December 4, it's flip season across the country in the recruiting arena.

Orange first-year head coach Fran Brown and his top-flight staff are faring quite well on the recruiting trail in the high school senior class. In recent days, the 'Cuse has secured verbal pledges from several 2025 players who flipped from other college squads to Syracuse football.

Now, to be fair, the Orange could see some of its verbal commits in the senior cycle flip to other schools ahead of the early signing period. It works both ways. But still, when I wrote this article, Syracuse football had at least 33 pledges in its massive 2025 class, and as far as I can tell, that is currently the highest number of commitments nationwide in this cycle.

One of the latest flips in the Orange's direction came from 2025 three-star linebacker Trey Dudley III, who announced his pledge to Syracuse football via his X page on November 27. The 6-foot-1, 215-pound Dudley, a senior at Briar Woods High School in Ashburn, Va., who also suits up at running back, had previously given a verbal commitment to James Madison.

Syracuse football has amassed a huge 2025 class so far.

Also over the past few days, for example, 2025 three-star edge Deangelo Thompson Jr. of Miami Northwestern Senior High School flipped from Florida Atlantic to the 'Cuse. And 2025 four-star defensive back Kaylib Singleton of Oakleaf High School in Orange Park, Fla., who was previously a Rutgers pledge, said that he would flip to Syracuse football.

In late September, 2025 four-star athlete/defensive back Demetres Samuel Jr., a top-150 national prospect out of Heritage High School in Palm Bay, Fla., flipped his verbal commitment back to the Orange from Florida.

When I penned this column on Thursday afternoon, the 'Cuse 2025 cycle contained 33 verbal pledges. In looking at recruiting Web sites, this is the most around the country, at least for the time being.

The Orange's 2025 class checked in at No. 34 nationally per the industry-generated 247Sports Composite, No. 35 via Rivals.com, and No. 44 on the On3 Web site.

Now, there are numerous other college teams that have higher-ranked 2025 cycles with fewer total commitments than Syracuse football. That's totally fine. Brown and his assistants have still done a phenomenal job with their senior class, and it could end up being the highest-rated cycle on the Hill for the 'Cuse since recruiting services began publishing these sorts of rankings on the Internet.

Tremendous.