Syracuse National Signing Day Preview

It should be an eventful day for the Orange on Wednesday.

National Signing Day is rapidly approaching as college football programs across the country add to their rosters for the upcoming season. The Syracuse Orange has a bit more up in the air than in typical years, so here is a look at who is deciding during the early period, which commits are signing early versus late, and when players can sign. 

EARLY SIGNING PERIOD

Starting at 7:00 a.m. Eastern, recruits can start sending in their signed National Letters of Intent. A signed letter is a binding commitment to that school by the player to officially join that respective program. While the common term is National Signing Day, the signing period actually stretches beyond just a single day. The early signing period starts on Wednesday, December 15th (National Signing Day) and goes until Friday, December 17th. That means recruits can sign anytime during that period. 

DECISIONS, DECISIONS

Here is a list of Syracuse recruiting targets making a decision on National Signing Day or during the early period.

LB Kadin Bailey: Bailey is the son of former Georgia All-American linebacker Boss Bailey and nephew of NFL Hall of Fame defensive back Champ Bailey. He took an official visit to Syracuse in early December. He has also taken an official to Kansas State, and holds an offer from Tennessee. 

QB Henry Belin: Belin has been committed to Duke since the summer. However, with their recent coaching change, whether or not Belin signs is up in the air. If he does, that is that and he will be a Blue Devil. If he does not, other schools could look to get back involved. Since the Orange recruited him previously and SU still needs a quarterback, this would be a situation to watch. 

DE Denis Jaquez: One of the top defensive linemen in New Jersey, Jaquez had been committed to Northwestern for months. However, he announced his decommitment on Monday following an official visit to Syracuse. Jaquez also holds offers from Boston College, Maryland, Rutgers, Texas A&M, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest. 

LB Garrison Madden: Madden took official visits to Syracuse and South Florida in early December before an offer from USC sparked an official visit this past weekend. He is expected to decide between those three schools on Signing Day. 

OL Terrance McClain: The junior college offensive lineman was offered by Syracuse very late in the cycle, but never took a visit. He has a top five of Jackson State, Memphis, Utah State, Syracuse and East Carolina. 

WR Chris Reed: The Utah commit was originally scheduled to take an official visit to Syracuse in December. However, following a trip to Utah, he cancelled the visit. If he elects not to sign early, perhaps the Orange could get a visit in January. 

THE COMMITS

Most years, there is at least one or two commits that do not sign early for one of a variety of reasons. Sometimes those that do not sign early sign with Syracuse late. Sometimes they do not sign with Syracuse at all. For the 2022 recruiting class, however, each of the 10 players verbally committed is expected to sign with the Orange. Here are those 10 players. 

RB LeQuint Allen (Millville High, NJ)

DT Belizaire Bassette (American Heritage High, FL)

WR Donovan Brown (Quine Orchard High, MD)

OL Joe Cruz (Sachem North, NY)

DB Dom Foster (Warren G Harding High, OH)

LB Mekhi Mason (Monsignor Pace High, FL)

DB Cornell Perry (Woodhaven High, MI)

DB Quan Peterson (South Pointe High, SC)

OL Chad Schuster (Franklin High, WI)

DB Jeremiah Wilson (Osceola High, FL)