For Isaiah McDuffie, the head coach’s son at Bennett (New York) High School, his college choice came down to the coaches.

McDuffie attended Syracuse’s camp in June and visited the school each of the past two summers. His interactions with SU head coach Scott Shafer, defensive coordinator Chuck Bullough and linebackers coach Clark Lea were enough to sell him on the Orange.

“I loved the coaches, I really did,” McDuffie said. “It was just a good atmosphere overall and I feel like the coaches are some of the best in the country so I want to play for them.”

The 6-foot-1, 205-pound outside linebacker became the second member of Syracuse’s Class of 2017 on Monday. He also had offers from UConn, Buffalo, Washington State and Penn State. McDuffie said his decision ultimately came down to the Orange and the Nittany Lions.

Though McDuffie also plays running back in high school, he was recruited by Syracuse to be a strictly defensive player. He said he might be moved to safety or even cornerback once he gets to college.

“I’m good in man coverage, but I can press up too,” McDuffie said. “I’m good in the box. I can hit. I’m really good at pursuing to the ball.”

While McDuffie joins Somerset Academy (Florida) High School wide receiver Daewood Davis as the only members of SU’s 2017 recruiting class, the Orange is still working on its 2016 class. With two players committed before their junior years have even started, Syracuse is on a pace faster than any in the past 10 classes.

For McDuffie, though, he said he wanted to get through the process sooner rather than later.

“If I made the decision early, I could just work on getting better and I don’t have to worry about committing to a school,” McDuffie said. “I can just focus more on just getting better.”

Published on July 20, 2015 at 8:26 pm

Contact Paul: pmschwed@syr.edu | @pschweds