Syracuse Football: Orange Steal One Commit, Miss Out On Two Others

The Syracuse Orange got an early jolt to National Signing Day Tuesday night, as three-star offensive lineman Kendall Moore committed to SU over Western Michigan.

Moore's announcement came during a NSD event at his Chicago high school where teammate, three-star linebacker Reggie Spearman, spurned the Orange by choosing Iowa.

Spearman announced for Syracuse then threw the hat off and put an Iowa hat on

— Allen Trieu (@AllenTrieu) February 6, 2013

(P.S., this is a classic signing day move by recruits. Please, refrain from sending angry tweets.)

Despite Spearman's decision, SU was able to steal Moore (6'5, 265 pounds) from the Broncos, who seemed to have locked up the 61st-ranked lineman. However, a late visit to Syracuse, which happened this past weekend with Spearman, and some good recruiting by running backs coach DeAndre Smith helped change his mind.

According to Rivals' Ryan Murray, one of the biggest reasons for the flip was Syracuse said it was willing to give Moore a shot at playing tight end. No other school seemed to be willing to offer that opportunity.

Another Syracuse target, four-star JUCO safety Duron Singleton, reportedly made an early decision Tuesday, and like Spearman it did not favor the Orange. According to NOLA.com, Singleton picked Missouri over SU.

However, Rival's Murray tweeted this late last night.

Fresno (Cali.) C.C. safety Duron Singleton left me a message tonight saying that he did not give Missouri a commitment. #SU still alive.

— Ryan Murray (@SUonRivals) February 6, 2013

Welcome to NSD breaking news.

Overall, it is a bit of a bummer both Spearman decided to go in another direction. But the good news is Moore was a huge steal this late in the process - he and Spearman were offered scholarships less than two weeks ago.

Hopefully, this pre-NSD momentum will help Syracuse land a few on-the-fence targets, including DE Malik Brown and RB Laray Smith, on Wednesday.