Much of the 51 men’s lacrosse players sat in a pack on one side of the Carrier Dome’s makeshift setup for the annual preseason media day. Much of the media stood about a dozen yards away, a scene akin to a middle school dance. But like those few girls at the dance who receive the attention, there were three freshmen who the media fawned over.

It’s not like Dan Hardy, Kenny Nims and Pat Perritt aren’t used to recorders stuffed in their faces. They were made coverboys before they played a game, appearing on the cover of September’s ‘Inside Lacrosse.’ They were proclaimed the best freshman class in the country and considering each was among the top five high school seniors last season, it’s no stretch.

But with lacrosse recruiting becoming tougher and though Syracuse failed to make the Final Four for the first time in 23 years, it wasn’t difficult for the Orange to secure the trio. Each was raised falling for SU’s lacrosse lore, yearning to play at SU.

Hardy’s father, Bill, played for Syracuse from 1981-1983, winning a national championship in 1983. Hardy’s brother, Tom, wore an Orange uniform from 1999-2002, winning two national championships. Nims’ father, Tom, playing goalie for the Orange from 1982-1985, joined Bill Hardy on the 1983 national championship team. Perritt’s brother, Bill, played at SU from 2000-2003, winning national championships in 2000 and 2002.

Talk about expectations.

‘They understood Syracuse and felt very good about coming here because of the experiences their relatives have had,’ SU head coach John Desko said. ‘For people to be in the middle of it and be first-hand part of the program, it’s a statement for the program.’

It was perhaps the easiest recruiting pitch Desko ever needed. All are from New York. All have lineage in the program. And all three knew each other before they arrived on campus.

Hardy and Nims played together in the Empire State Games in high school. Perritt knew Hardy from seeing each other at SU games when their brothers played together for the Orange in the early 2000s. Hardy also stayed at Perritt’s Long Island home during the summer. The two are roommates on South Campus. Nims and Perritt also had a prior relationship from different lacrosse events. The triangle helped make the choice as easy as a game against a peewee also-ran.

‘The second I came here and came to a game in the Carrier Dome, I got the chills,’ said Perritt, who mildly considered attending North Carolina. ‘I knew right away that it was the right place.’

Plus, Perritt had his brother and his brother’s friends. When he was in ninth grade, Perritt attended his brother’s games and was old enough to hang out with players like Steve Panarelli and Greg Rommel. Now, they’re his teammates.

‘Throughout the whole time, I was talking to Pat on the phone because we were friends, and I knew Billy really well, so I wanted Pat to come here,’ Panarelli said. ‘I knew how special this place is and I knew how good he could be here in a system like this. So it meant a lot to me when Pat came here. I was excited to hear the news.’

For Hardy, his brother and his father also helped in the process – although there might have been a hint of familial competitiveness involved. Hardy’s father has a ring from Syracuse. Hardy’s brother has two rings from Syracuse. And as good as Hardy ever becomes – he’s wearing SU lacrosse’s venerable No. 22, last worn by Michael Powell, who many consider to be the Orange’s top player – he’ll never have bragging rights until he wins a title.

‘We joke around about it,’ Hardy said. ‘My brother has two rings. I try talking a little trash to him but he pulls out his rings and shuts me up.’

Nims’ number is also important to him. He wears the No. 10 his father wore at Syracuse. Tom Nims, Syracuse’s second all-time leader in saves, died in 1993 from a blood clot that resulted from hardened arteries caused by diabetes. Nims congenially talks about his father’s influence and is prideful when discussing his number.

But don’t expect the attackman to honor his father by playing goalie. Nims tried, but it didn’t work.

‘I used to be scared of the ball, so I switched to attack,’ Nims said. ‘I played there until fifth grade. I used to run out of the goal and try to score so I switched over.’

Syracuse utilized its pipeline to recruit the trio. Now the Orange is relying on them in its rotation.

Desko said last season’s team lacked appropriate depth and the newcomers will be important – Hardy and Nims at attack and Perritt at midfield. But their positions might be negotiable.

‘These three guys are very good. They’re going to play this year,’ Desko said. ‘We’re figuring out what position. This is the deepest attack. If your fourth and fifth best players are at the same position, you need to find a way to put the best players on the field.’

In SU’s opening two scrimmages against Fairfield and Le Moyne, Nims scored two goals in both games. Perritt found the net in SU’s scrimmage against Navy. And it seems every time on the field, they continue to dazzle.

But Desko also made sure to mention SU’s other talented freshmen. While Hardy, Nims and Perritt are the most touted, they’re not the end of the strong freshman class. Michigan’s famed ‘Fab Five’ in basketball wasn’t built on Chris Webber, Jalen Rose and Juwan Howard alone, and neither is SU’s group of newcomers. Desko specifically mentioned midfielder Matt Abbott and defenseman Mark Cahak and continued to allude to a deep class that’s considered to be the top in the nation. As deep as it is, though, it will be judged by the success of the Big Three recruits.

‘They have a lot of responsibility; we’re counting on them in some big games,’ Panarelli said. ‘We have a lot of guys back, but when you bring in guys like that – I know how it feels, because I came in and played right away – you just have to play your game. Right now, they look great; I’m not going to lie. Those guys are really good.’

Panarelli’s right: he was in those shoes two seasons ago. And Mike Leveille was in them last year. Freshmen are always the new kids on the block and the star newcomers are going to receive inordinate amounts of attention. But until they play for a substantial period of time and Hardy can show his brother a ring of his own, they’ll just be hype on a magazine cover.

‘Everyone keeps talking about the hype, but we haven’t even played any games,’ Hardy said. ‘It’s not bad, but it’s about time to get the season going.’

Published on February 21, 2006 at 12:00 pm