Whether you choose to be distracted by Syracuse Orange basketball or not, to quote fellow TNIAAM writers Andy Pregler and Steve Haller, “It’s always college football season.” That statement rang true on Tuesday night as QB Dan Villari announced on his Instagram that he will transfer from Michigan to Syracuse.
Villari is a New York kid, graduating from Plainedge High School in Massapequa. He played in four games during two seasons with Michigan, completing one pass on three attempts for 26 yards. He was a three-star recruit out of high school and the No. 14 player in his class from New York via 247Sports. He also was a first-team All-State and All-Long Island selection during his high school days.
The addition of Villari is important for the Orange just to have some depth and a little added experience in the quarterback room. Syracuse only has three scholarship QBs on its roster in Garrett Shrader, JaCobian Morgan and Justin Lamson. The Orange had five scholarship signal callers to start the 2021 season before Tommy DeVito and Dillon Markiewicz entered the transfer portal. Syracuse has also yet to secure a commitment from a high school recruit in the class of 2022.
Welcome Dan to Syracuse! Check out some of his winter workout tapes here:
Comments
Sweet!
By all-orange on 01.11.22 7:57pm
Big dude who can run. Definitely an athlete. Pretty strong arm.
Four years of eligibility left too. I’m pretty pumped to see what he can do.
By bigstu58 on 01.11.22 7:57pm
Welcome young man
Good signing. Competition always good.
Comes from good, high intensity program…
With a former QB as head coach..
By Smith-Jones on 01.11.22 8:18pm
Now get some DL & WR
How about some Georgia sized DL !!!
By Smith-Jones on 01.11.22 8:20pm
Seems like a strange player to offer, IMO
A home state player we didn’t offer the first time around who didn’t do anything at his first school.
Maybe Beck and/or Anae saw something they liked from his tape? Regardless, we needed another QB.
Hoping he or one of the other guys can push Shrader for the starting job.
By SenatorScrungus on 01.11.22 8:25pm
If he was coming from Central Michigan I'd be a bit curious
but the fact Michigan saw enough to offer and considering his running ability I think it actually makes a lot of sense
By Rothenberg on 01.11.22 8:27pm
Fair
I was just hoping for someone a bit more proven because I’m personally super done with Shrader.
By SenatorScrungus on 01.11.22 9:07pm
I'm right there with on Shrader
and yeah I would have preferred a more proven option too. It is nice that he has 4 years of eligibility though.
By Rothenberg on 01.11.22 10:48pm
How many proven QBs transfer to lower level P5 schools?
Hell, how many proven QBs transfer at all? Thinking about recent guys into the ACC, shrader might be the second most proven!
Jurkovec – backup at ND only 15 passes thrown
Brice – backup at Clemson 85 passes thrown
Milton – massive (almost) career ending injury
Martell – never played before, never played after
King is probably the only major outlier
I think a backup with some talent is the best syracuse can expect
By Cuse181 on 01.12.22 12:13am
I thought that Syracuse did offer him out of high school
"A home state player we didn’t offer the first time around…"
I could be wrong about this but I’m pretty sure that they did.
By william.brennan.9210 on 01.12.22 7:56am
Per 247
Michigan was the only P5. Interest, no offer from Wisconsin, no sniff from us. Sometimes those can be off, but if there’s no listing of even interest it’s usually relatively accurate.
By Steve Haller on 01.12.22 12:23pm
Fits The Mould
Jason Beck, the new QB coach, has had some success in the past developing dual-threat QBs. Villari fits the bill. He entered the portal on Thursday, and the Orange, hunting the portal for a QB, wasted no time, and extended an offer on Friday. If you take a few minutes to watch his highlight tapes (247 or Hudl), he looks to be accurate with the deep ball, an area in which Shrader struggles. Whether he actually poses a challenge to Schrader is unlikely, but not unrealistic. I am surprised Syracuse did not offer him out of high school.
By Skipman37 on 01.11.22 8:46pm
Uhhh
Can he throw? At all? Then he’s a keeper.
By Skortchaser on 01.11.22 9:43pm
Off
By CuseOrange44 on 01.11.22 9:43pm
Offer
I believe that SU did give him an offer out of high school.
By CuseOrange44 on 01.11.22 9:47pm
I don't see it
According to an article in Wolverineswire.com from two years ago, announcing his commitment to Michigan, his offer sheet included, U.Mass, Fordham, Albany, Buffalo, Kent St., Central CT., and Michigan. The article states that Villari planned on waiting until National Signing Day to see if he would receive and offer from Virginia Tech, Pitt, or Syracuse. When none came, he committed to Michigan.
By Skipman37 on 01.11.22 10:51pm
Article by Evan Petzold 1/3/20, 9:30 AM ET
Entitled, "‘Ultimate Competition’, Dan Villari’s Unexpected Journey To Michigan."
By Skipman37 on 01.11.22 10:57pm
That's kind of funny how it played out
He had to ‘settle’ for Michigan because VA Tech, Pitt, and Syracuse didn’t offer him a scholarship. I’d be curious what Michigan saw in him that the other three P5’s didn’t.
Anyhow, glad to have him aboard.
By OrangeRay on 01.12.22 8:17am
yea funny strange
By martin db5 on 01.12.22 9:36am
Exactly
The better program took the guy that three struggling programs passed on?
By OrangeRay on 01.12.22 10:10am
Odds are he starts from almost day one…
Huge get. Let’s keep it rolling!!!
By VirginiaCuse on 01.11.22 10:05pm
A bit irrelevant to this great news but…
The new coaches are not recruiters at all. Especially on the east coast. They can develop relationships but currently they have none. However the transfer portal does reach to the west coast. Just don’t have high hopes on East coast transfer guys….
By VirginiaCuse on 01.11.22 10:09pm
You’re telling me Anae
Who spent the last 6 years at Virginia and living in the DMV area didn’t develop any east coast recruiting ties? I’m going to call B.S. on that one bud. I don’t think anyone is calling him an ace, but to assume that he has NO relationships at all? No way.
By Cuse181 on 01.12.22 12:19am
You’ll enjoy this.
Very entertaining breakdown, with bonus jokes and garbage!, looking at Villari as a HS croot.
https://youtu.be/X11kMRprkAw
By 721 Comstock on 01.11.22 10:59pm
Oh man
That’s the funniest thing I’ve seen in ages! I’m telling you, it’s gold, Jerry, gold!
By RunADK on 01.12.22 12:22am