Darius Kelly, a defensive back from Pima Community College in Tucson, Ariz., gave a verbal commitment to Syracuse on Thursday.

The 5-foot-11, 190-lb. safety committed to Marshall last week, but changed his mind when Syracuse made its offer, Scout.com reported.

Josh Kirkland from Butler Community College in Kansas also committed to Syracuse on Thursday, according to Scout.com.

The 6-foot-3, 207-lb. Kirkland pledged to play for the Orange during an in-home visit from head coach Doug Marrone, according to ESPN.com

Kirkland played at Butler, which finished its 2012 season 11-1, for two years. This past season, he finished with 66 tackles and six sacks. He averaged 5.5 tackles per game.

Scout.com gave Kirkland two stars.

Kelly and Kirkland are the third and fourth juco players to commit to Syracuse in the last week, joining offensive lineman John Miller and defensive end Trevon Trejo.

The Orange now has a total of 12 commits in the class of 2013.

Published on December 14, 2012 at 4:22 pm

Contact Chris: cjiseman@syr.edu | @chris_iseman