Get to Know Your Orange Man: #30, LB Juan Wallace

Name: Juan Wallace

Position: Linebacker

Year: Freshman

Height: 6’2”

Weight: 214

Hometown: Washington, D.C.

High School: IMG Academy (Fla.)

2017 stats: IMG is weird about how they dole out playing time, so not a ton of players get to tally a ton of statistics. for Wallace, he logged 13 tackles and 1.5 sacks last year.

2018 projections: There are a decent number of young linebackers on this roster, so with luck the Syracuse Orange can redshirt Wallace and then let him jump into the competition come 2019 when two starting spots open up with Ryan Guthrie and Kielian Whitner graduating.

How’d he get here?: Wallace picked Syracuse all the way back in May 2017, then stuck around despite offers from schools like Georgia, Kentucky, Wisconsin, West Virginia and Maryland among others.

What’d recruiting sites say?: Three stars, and one of the top 40 inside linebackers in the country for 2018.

Money Quote: Juan lucked out on his official visit last year and ended up on campus for the Clemson game. He spoke about it a bit to Syracuse.com afterward.

“It was my first time actually seeing Syracuse play in person, so watching them beat a top-10 team like that, it was a lot to take in. It was something you dream about watching, something you wanted to see.”

Twtitter feed: @juanwallacejr

Tweets of wonder: I can assure Wallace that there’s always space on the Lakers bandwagon out here. I’ve watched it grow by millions in a matter of just a week and a half, especially if you count all the former fans like my wife who deserted the team when they were bad yet now come running back since LeBron’s here...

What movie would Dino Babers recommend?: Wallace Shawn played Vizzini in 1987’s “The Princess Bride,” and this seems like less of a Dino recommendation than it is a Sean Keeley recommendation.

Interesting nugget o’interest: If Juan gets to the NFL, he wouldn’t be the first member of his family to accomplish the feat. His cousin Ken Crawley plays cornerback for the New Orleans Saints and recorded 54 tackles and an interception last season.

Let’s get a good look at ya: As has been the case lately, Syracuse does a nice job collecting some quality highlights for National Signing Day.