Syracuse receives NLI from 2026 Garden State linebacker

2026 linebacker Gemaus Sackie has signed a national letter of intent with Syracuse, the school announced on Wednesday.

The Burlington (NJ) Township athlete is rated three stars by 247 Sports and is the No. 24 prospect in the Garden State. Sackie committed in June, and selected the Orange over offers from Monmouth, Stony Brook and Temple, among others.

Sackie pledged coming off an official visit in June where he received the offer, and cited the relationships he build with the coaching staff, including head coach Fran Brown, as a key reason for committing.

Sackie's OV was key in his commitment

"The visit was down to Earth," Sackie said. "Fran's plan was to show me how it is at Syracuse and the visit to not be scripted. He did a very good job on that and it opened my eyes to what I should expect as a freshman."

Aside from Brown, Sackie got to connect with linebackers coach Robert Wright and defensive coordinator Elijah Robinson.

"Coach Wright talked to me about what to expect from Syracuse and how he coaches his linebackers," Sackie said. "Coach E talked more about the defensive philosophy and how hard practices at Syracuse get. He told me how being an athlete at Syracuse is not an easy task but it builds you to become a better man in the future."

Sackie's looking forward to playing in the Dome

Another highlight for Sackie was seeing the JMA Wireless Dome for the first time.

"The atmosphere of being in that stadium is something I never experienced before," Sackie said. "It was truly amazing to be in there and hopefully make some plays in there."

Sackie added that he chose Syracuse because of the opportunity to grow not only as a football player, but also as an individual.

Sackie appreciated Syracuse's recruiting approach

That message was conveyed to Sackie the entire weekend.

"The visit showed me of how much of accomplishment it is to attend Syracuse," Sackie said. "Fran really cares about his players and wants them to succeed regardless of how they play on the field. He wants them to become better men coming out of Syracuse and he did a great job doing that.”

Sackie’s Falcons team finished 10-1 on the season, with a tough 15-13 loss to Mainland Regional in the NJSIAA playoffs ending their season.

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