When recruits ask Syracuse head coach Scott Shafer about his job security, he tells them what he knows: He has one year left on his contract and wants to keep his job for longer.

“‘If you join us, you’ll help us be here for a long time,’” Shafer said. “So that’s what I tell them. It’s as simple as that, nothing more.”

Syracuse (3-6, 1-4 Atlantic Coast) has gone 13-21 in Shafer’s nearly three seasons and is potentially facing back-to-back 3-9 years. As questions about his job security have been raised among fans, recruiting is at the forefront of discussions regarding the effect of a coaching change.

In 2013, after then-head coach Doug Marrone left for the Buffalo Bills’ job, Shafer had to scramble to complete the recruiting class. Syracuse’s 2016 class currently includes 15 players and its 2017 class includes two, but if a head coaching change was made, they may choose other schools and leave the new coach scrambling the way Shafer was in his first offseason.

Uncertainty among recruits about who will be the head coach could factor in to them ultimately choosing a different school.

“When I talk to kids in recruiting, whether it’s a couple years ago when I first started at it or today, tomorrow, it’s the same message,” Shafer said. “Here’s where we’re going, here’s how we’re going to ramp up the program, here are the models that we’ve been a part of or we think are comparable to ours and this is where you fit in.”