Greg Adkins wasn’t ever certain. Not until Wayne Morgan’s name and signature came across the fax machine was he secure in his impression that one of the best recruits in New York would be coming to Syracuse.

‘That’s when you know for sure,’ said Adkins, Syracuse’s recruiting coordinator and offensive line coach. ‘We felt pretty good about the situation for a period of time, but again, some things that have happened over the past few days, you always wait for the fax to get in and then you feel good about it.’

Morgan — a defensive back from Brooklyn who was rated four stars by ESPN, and three by Scout.com and Rivals.com — became one of the crown jewels of SU’s recruiting class with his commitment. The recruit was rated as high as the No. 11 safety in the nation and the No. 3 player in New York. Morgan, tight end Ron Thompson, of Southfield, Mich., and quarterback Ashton Broyld, of Rochester, each earned a four-star rating from a recruiting service.

The three are at the forefront of a 22-player Class of 2012 that Syracuse head coach Doug Marrone and Adkins presented Wednesday at a national signing day press conference. In what might be the most complete incoming class Marrone has put together going into his fourth year on the job, he and Adkins agreed that the coaching staff succeeded in addressing the team’s needs, bringing in quality talent all over the field.

That quality talent came with the stress of the final push before signing day. Syracuse had power-conference schools interested in its verbal commits, and the coaching staff hoped the bonds it had forged with players stuck through it.

‘As far as the last 72 hours, I’m not going to lie,’ Marrone said. ‘It was very difficult.’

Morgan didn’t announce his commitment until signing day. For weeks, it was neck and neck between SU and Connecticut, but Penn State also tried swooping into the mix and had an offer on the table, according to Scout.com.

He played defensive back and quarterback for Erasmus Hall in Brooklyn, displaying versatility, speed and playmaking ability on both sides of the ball.

From a psyche sense, his choice to SU reaffirms strides the Orange has made in recruiting under Marrone.

‘I think he’s a dynamic player from what I’ve seen and what we’ve evaluated on film,’ Adkins said. ‘He’s a guy who we’ve been on for probably longer than any other player we’ve recruited at Syracuse.’

Syracuse’s class was ranked 53rd by Scout, which is actually a slight drop from the 51st-place ranking nationally last year. But last year’s class was larger. This year’s class has better-rated recruits, on average.

Take Ron Thompson. The 6-foot-4, 225-pound tight end had offers from Michigan, Illinois, Indiana and Vanderbilt, among others, according to Scout. Yet Thompson decided to commit to Syracuse on Nov. 7, ending most of the suspense.

Part of the reason he chose SU may have been the tight end’s role in the Orange offense. Thompson’s commitment came not too long after Nick Provo caught three touchdowns against West Virginia on Oct. 21.

With the senior Provo on his way out, Thompson could step in.

‘Ron Thompson’s a guy who the whole Big 10 courted,’ said John Garcia Jr., recruiting analyst for Scout. ‘An instant impact tight end, and especially with Nick Provo leaving it just kind of lined up for Syracuse.’

Thompson and Josh Parris — a 6-foot-3, 240-pound tight end who had offers from Virginia Tech, West Virginia, Virginia and Mississippi — make a formidable freshman duo at the position. Adkins said they’re a little bit different style-wise from each other, but he sees them both having good careers for Syracuse.

Syracuse also came out with a positive by flipping Myles Hilliard. The 6-foot-5, 250-pound defensive end committed to Pittsburgh, but reopened his recruitment when head coach Todd Graham moved on to Arizona State.

Hilliard was faced with offers from Michigan State, Minnesota and West Virginia.

‘As a coach, you’d like to sit here and say, ‘We must be on the right kids if all these other teams are coming in,” Marrone said. ‘But in a same sense, you’re fighting your butt off and you hope that you laid the groundwork.’

Two players Syracuse developed relationships with long ago are Ashton Broyld and Myles Davis. Davis, a linebacker-turned-fullback, originally committed to Syracuse’s Class of 2010. But he spent the 2010 season in prep school at Milford Academy in New Berlin, N.Y.

He was in the Class of 2011, but a torn anterior cruciate ligament kept him from joining Syracuse last season. Finally, he has arrived and is healthy.

Broyld spent last season at Milford Academy after originally committing to Syracuse more than a year ago. But his fall was spent well, as he threw for six touchdowns and ran for six more.

He was bumped up to a four-star rating by Scout this year. At 6 feet 4 inches and 229 pounds, Broyld has the size to be a weapon in a multitude of positions. But Adkins said SU sees him at quarterback.

Marrone said he hopes ‘quite a few’ of the freshmen can see some time right away. It could be the most talented class SU has brought in since Marrone arrived, and the Orange managed to hang on to recruits in the final days when the big schools came calling.

Defensive back Julian Whigham resisted what Miami (Fla.) had to offer. Defensive end Josh Manley stuck with Syracuse over new Southeastern Conference member Missouri.

And Morgan, faced with a plethora of offers, chose Syracuse. Even if it has yet to show on the field, it’s a positive indication for the Orange’s future.

‘We were still well received across the country no matter where we went, whether it was Georgia, Florida, or California or New York,’ Adkins said. ‘And I think a lot of kids, a lot of parents, were very well receptive to us in their homes and know the vision that we have here at Syracuse.’

mcooperj@syr.edu

—Staff writer Michael Cohen contributed reporting to this article. 

Published on February 1, 2012 at 12:00 pm

Contact Mark: mcooperj@syr.edu | @mark_cooperjr