Francis Folefac becomes 3rd Siena transfer to commit to Syracuse
Siena forward Francis Folefac announced his commitment to Syracuse Monday after averaging 11.3 points and 5.3 rebounds as a freshman. Leonardo Eriman | Daily Orange File Photo
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Siena transfer forward Francis Folefac is headed to Syracuse, he announced on Instagram Monday afternoon. Folefac, who stands 6-foot-7, 245 pounds, is a welcome addition for an SU team that lost both its centers and top three rebounders from last season.
At Mt. Zion High School (Maryland), Folefac earned Washington Post Second Team All-Met honors as a senior and All-Metro Private School Conference Defensive Player of the Year the season prior. Folefac wasn’t heavily recruited out of high school, fielding offers from Bethune-Cookman, San Jose State, Holy Cross, UMBC and, of course, Siena, per 247Sports. He chose the Saints and then-head coach Gerry McNamara.
Across his freshman season with Siena, Folefac kept it up. In 35 games (26 starts), he averaged 11.3 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.2 assists on 51.5% shooting. He scored in double digits in 23 of those games, but his shining moment was scoring 18 in a full 40 minutes to nearly upset No. 1 seed Duke in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Following that loss, McNamara moved over to Syracuse to coach his alma mater. After fellow Siena teammates Gavin Doty and Tasman Goodrick made the jump with McNamara, Folefac becomes the third former Saint to join him.
He has three years of eligibility remaining.
Folefac also marks Syracuse’s sixth portal addition, which also includes Temple’s Aiden Tobiason and McNeese State’s Garwey Dual. Four-star freshman Ryan Moesch also flipped his commitment from Siena to SU.
Last season, Syracuse placed fourth to last in the Atlantic Coast Conference in rebounds per game (34.2), which Folefac should help improve. The Orange also lost leading rebounders William Kyle III, who’s out of eligibility, and Donnie Freeman, who entered the portal, voids Folefac, Goodrick and Appalachian State transfer Luke Wilson will try to fill.
