The Syracuse JMA Wireless Dome - Eric Reinhardt/CNYBJ
With less than a week away until the Syracuse Football team kicks off its 2025 football season against the Tennessee Volunteers, there is one key player everyone is excited to watch make his collegiate debut.
While most 17-year-olds are starring on Friday Night Lights in high school football, this unique individual is looking to play not just one side of the ball, but on both offense and defense as a freshman in college.
He has been named Syracuse Football’s starting cornerback for the team’s opening game, and his name is Demetres Samuel Jr.
How it all started before Syracuse Football
The former Heritage High School star from Palm Bay, Florida, reclassified from the 2026 class to the 2025 class. In addition, he committed to Syracuse Football at 6’2″, 180 lbs.
He then flipped back to Florida, and then back to the Orange last September. The four-star recruit did record two tackles for loss, seven pass breakups, 343 receiving yards, and two touchdowns while in his senior year at Heritage High School.
Nevertheless, head coach Fran Brown won another big recruiting battle.
What Samuel will play for Syracuse Football
According to Brown, Samuel will start for Syracuse Football at corner, and will also play wide receiver. Additionally, he expects Samuel to be one of the three youngest starting cornerbacks in the ACC.
Syracuse Football is projected to start Georgia transfer Chris Peal, and sophomore Davien Kerr to round out the group at nickelback.
The three players have taken a mere 230 college snaps on defense. Meanwhile, every other ACC club boasts one or more forecasted starters with more skill than Syracuse Football’s cornerback trio.
While the fans and coaching staff would like to see Samuel on the field as much as possible, Brown does not have an exact number of scripted plays for Samuel on offense. It all depends on how his body holds up and how much the offense needs him to play.
Other two-way Players
Two-way players have been making a comeback in the last decade of college football. Crazy talents like Travis Hunter played both cornerback and wide receiver at Jackson State and Colorado.
The Number 2 overall pick in the 2025 NFL draft will try in some way to play both sides of the ball in Jacksonville this season. There is also New England Patriots safety Jabril Peppers, who, back in college, played running back, kick, and punt returner.
He played these positions alongside his natural safety position because Jim Harbaugh wanted to try to boost his Heisman Trophy chances.
Conclusion
Being a two-way player, whether in high school or college, doesn’t just come and knock on your door. It demands hard work, as well as the physical and mental mindset to adapt to increased playing time.
There may be a refining interval, but Syracuse Football fans should be hyped about how Samuel showed off his talents during fall camp. Look for the two-way athlete to thread in the heels of Hunter’s two-year time.
Coach Brown is tempering his expectations by realizing the importance of putting players in positions to succeed. A potential season-ending injury at cornerback could hinder their plans of trying to plug in other players at different positions.
Nevertheless, year two under Fran Brown could be exciting to watch because of their potential new two-way player in Samuel, Jr.
