Syracuse, N.Y. — The Syracuse football team’s most recent verbal commitment wasn’t much of a football player in high school.
He didn’t play his senior year. His old coach didn’t remember if he got on the field when he was on the team as a junior.
He never popped up on the radar or scouting services, even in his playing days.
He is 25 years old and hasn’t played competitive football in at least seven years. He is 5-foot-8, which matches the shortest player on the Syracuse roster this season.
But Nau’Jour Grainger, better known as the rapper Toosii, has a social media following that dwarfs the Syracuse football program and has played concerts at NBA venues across the country.
There is reason to question whether the commitment is more stunt than substance. But if Grainger comes to Syracuse to play football for head coach Fran Brown, he will be a compelling side story even if he never plays a meaningful snap.
Grainger did not sign with the Orange on Early National Signing Day on Wednesday, an indication he will likely be a walk-on with the Orange if he comes.
The musician’s potential presence at Syracuse will either be a fascinating sideshow — and potentially a genius decision — that opens new revenue streams for the school and his coaches, or he will serve as an example of a desperate, attention-seeking move by a program coming off one of the most embarrassing stretches of football in school history.
“If Fran (Brown) thinks this helps his program, whether it’s as a player, whether it’s notoriety or whatever, then he should do this,” said Brian Dohn, who covers East Coast recruiting for 247Sports. “This is his prerogative and he’s not going to make rash decisions.
“I’d have to believe he’s weighed the options of what it means, what it doesn’t mean and the publicity that comes from it — good and bad.”
Grainger has described the possibility of playing football for Syracuse as a chance to live out a dream, an opportunity for a musician who has already struck it rich to experience the other fantasy of his youth.
The big question is why Brown has chosen to indulge it and what purpose he plays in the coach’s vision for the Orange, especially when it comes to recruiting elite athletes and helping generate revenue for the school and his players.
While Grainger’s assortment of workout highlights indicates he has put in admirable work to get himself into shape, he is almost certainly not coming to Syracuse to play football in any meaningful way.
Grainger’s path is atypical of anyone who has ever played college sports at a serious level.
He has been out of high school for seven years and was never a standout at the most fundamental level of the sport.
Wilson Helms, who coached Grainger for his final two years of high school, paused to search for polite words when asked if there was anything about Grainger he noticed that made him think he could contribute at the Division I level as a player.
“I’m not trying to say anything bad about anyone,” Helms said. “But it wouldn’t have been something that crossed my mind. I think he was 5-foot-6, 140 pounds, so … I don’t know, maybe he had a growth spurt.”
If so, it was a small one. Grainger recently said on social media that he measures 5-foot-8.
His only other offer to play college football came from Sacramento State, an FCS program desperately seeking any attention that would help it make the jump to FBS football. This year that included trying to spark interest by paying $100,000 for a performance by rapper Lil Yachty that was cut short after 10 minutes.
Dohn said it was possible that Syracuse values Grainger as a player but noted that prospects his height are rarely viewed as viable recruits in major college football unless it’s at running back. Grainger played wide receiver in high school, a position where size is often helpful.
Syracuse had just two players on its roster who were as short as Grainger last year, walk-on running back Tyler Chandler and walk-on wide receiver Nick Armentano.
Helms said that Grainger was “in and out” of the middle-of-the-road high school football program during his time coaching him.
He said Grainger didn’t play for the varsity team as a high school senior. He believes that was because he was more focused on making music.
He said Grainger was part of the team as a junior until the two had a conversation in which Grainger expressed a desire to spend more time on his music.
The website MaxPreps.com, which records high school stats from various programs across the country, does not include a record of Grainger making a catch that year or returning any kicks.
Helms said he did not remember if Grainger played in any actual varsity games.
He said Grainger was a solid route-runner with some quickness and, if he’d focused on football, he could have been a contributor for a high school program that went 4-7.
“I don’t remember exactly when he made his decision,” Helms said. “There was no blowup or anything like that. He came to me very respectfully and expressed that he wanted to focus on his music. It seems like that was a really good choice for him.”
Despite all that, Grainger appears to be the choice of Brown, a coach who prizes measurables and a love of competition, to take one of the program’s approximately 105 roster spots.
The natural assumption is that Brown believes Grainger has other benefits.
ESPN recruiting expert Craig Haubert said that seems viable. He said he felt the addition was a win-win for Syracuse and Grainger, saying a recruit like him failing to work out would do little damage and the potential payoff is significant if he beat the odds.
“We don’t know for certain, but history would suggest with the significant time away he has not developed into [a Power-Four] caliber prospect,” Haubert said. “They say every athlete wants to be an entertainer and every entertainer wishes they were a pro athlete, and he is getting his chance to do what many have wished they could.
“If he develops into a contributor, that is great for him and Syracuse. The more likely scenario is he doesn’t, and if that is the case, Toosii wouldn’t be the first recruit programs missed on.”
The numbers that Grainger has amassed won’t help the Orange on gamedays but could provide boosts in other ways.
He is a double-platinum musician with 4.6 million followers on Instagram — Syracuse football has 139,000 — and has struck it rich with hits like “Favorite Song.”
He turned a previous visit to Sacramento State into the first (and so far only) episode of a YouTube series titled, “Chasing Saturdays.”
Syracuse, which Grainger visited recently, may soon get its own star turn on YouTube, where Grainger has 2.6 million subscribers.
How exactly Brown plans to use this skillset for his benefit is unclear, but it doesn’t necessarily have to involve playing.
“You’ve got 105 guys,” Dohn said. “You don’t need to play 105. You need some to practice and in the NIL and rev-share world, if (Brown) thinks he helps you, in whatever vein, then sure, why not?”
Possibilities range from helping his program financially to boosting recruiting to serving as a source of inspiration and amplifying Brown’s message of overcoming the odds.
Perhaps the closest example of an athlete like Grainger comes from Percy Romeo Miller, the rapper known as Lil’ Romeo. Miller averaged 13.9 points and 5.6 assists as a junior in high school before signing with Southern California. Recruited largely so that USC could attract his friend and top recruit DeMar DeRozan, Miller played nine games over two seasons for the Trojans.
Cordell Broadus, the son of Snoop Dogg, had offers from Florida State and Notre Dame, was supposed to attend UCLA but never arrived at training camp and quit the sport.
That pair of rappers attempted to play college out of high school, when most athletes make that leap.
Grainger’s announcement that he would play at Syracuse drew a mixed reaction. Some praised him for working hard to make a dream happen, while others criticized him for taking a spot away from a player who may have been more deserving.
Most Syracuse players welcomed Grainger on social media with quarterback Steve Angeli posting “Yessir” and offensive lineman Byron Washington posting “Let’s do it,” on Instagram.
Departing defensive lineman Chris Thomas posted an opposing “jit delusional.”
Grainger’s story is certainly inspirational.
He has publicly discussed growing up with struggles in Syracuse and dropping out of high school. He has expressed a desire to go back and earn his general-equivalency degree and stressed the importance of education. He endured a stretch of homelessness before striking it rich as a musician and advocates for living a healthy lifestyle despite his music success.
Grainger acknowledged on a recent podcast appearance with former Clemson football player Darien Rencher that he anticipated schools would be interested in him for financial reasons.
Concerts have occasionally been tried at spring games across college campuses, perhaps most notably at Georgia, where Brown spent time as an assistant coach.
Earlier this year, Georgia announced plans to try to include a concert as part of its spring game festivities.
In 2016, head coach Kirby Smart also scheduled music as part of the school’s spring game festivities, goosing the crowd for the event with an appearance by Ludacris.
In 2019, Florida State had MC Hammer and Tone Loc perform after its spring game.
North Carolina introduced the “Chapel Thrill Game Day” experience after hiring Bill Belichick, including a pregame concert by country music artist Chase Rice before the season opener against Texas Christian University.
It’s not hard to imagine that possibility playing out at Syracuse, with a popular musician as an actual member of the team. The opportunity to finally produce a quality homecoming for Grainger likely makes the idea even more appealing.
Toosii has had four scheduled concerts in his hometown canceled for a variety of reasons in recent years. He was scheduled to play in Albany on Dec. 6, but that concert was canceled.
Schools and athletic programs have always factored in financial benefits when considering which students to accept.
One high-profile example at the moment appears to be Noah Lobdell and the Syracuse men’s basketball team.
The former Faith Heritage player is the only player on the men’s basketball team without a high-level basketball background. His father, Vinny, earned his wealth running an air-purification business. He held a high-profile fundraiser for the program at his barn in Skaneateles this offseason.
Noah Lobdell has been praised by coaches and teammates for helping provide energy on the team’s bench.
In Grainger’s case he would, presumably, be grateful for the chance and feel indebted to the program that allows him the chance to live out his football fantasy.
“I understand the business side of things,” Grainger said during his podcast appearance. “The business side of things is, well, recruiting me you get a donor because I become an alum and when I become an alum, I’m an investor into the school. I got the money to invest now.
“I’m doing this because this was my first love. Before music, this was all I knew.”
