The Syracuse University men's basketball team earned its third straight win inside Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) play on Tuesday night, beating Florida State 94-86 at the JMA Wireless Dome.

The fast-paced game saw a great environment as the students returned to campus, and Donnie Freeman didn't disappoint, scoring a game-high 25 points. 

But in addition to what transpired on the floor, there was also a new addition to the Syracuse bench: Freshman Calvin Russell III.

One of the top-ranked wide receiver recruits in the country, Russell is one of the best Syracuse football recruits in history. But he's also part of the SU basketball team now, having moved into campus early and joining the team as a mid-season addition. It's unclear if he'll actually get into a basketball game this season, but since he's an active student, he's eligible to.

--As you can see in the video above, Russell said that it was never a question of whether or not he'd play both sports at Syracuse. He said that head football coach Fran Brown encouraged him to do so.

--He also said that during basketball season, he's committed to basketball. "Anything I put my feet into, that's where I'm going to be at."

--He said that he enjoyed his first experience at the Dome, and noticed how much energy the players took from the crowd. He also said that the college game clearly moves faster than the high school game and that the fans are "way more into it."

The final Syracuse basketball regular season game is March 7, with the ACC Tournament to follow. Last year, the spring football season began on March 21. Presuming that a similar schedule is kept in 2026, Russell will be able to stay the entire regular season and ACC Tournament with the hoops team, and then be able to report to spring football practice.

It's unclear what would happen if SU were to make the NCAA Tournament and that timing is thrown off.

In football, players can play up to four games without burning a year of eligibility. That doesn't exist in basketball, so if Russell suits up at all, he will lose a year of eligibility. If the Orange hope to have him for four full seasons, putting him in a game this year would be unwise. If they don't think they will, then getting him into some blowout games later in the year is certainly possible.

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