Syracuse, N.Y. — Syracuse football tight end Oronde Gadsden II is done for the spring after undergoing a successful surgery to remove the screws inserted in his right foot to repair his Lisfranc injury.
Orange coach Fran Brown shared the news following Tuesday’s practice when Gadsden was seen back in tennis shoes and working out with trainers rather than participating in drills.
Gadsden had been absent from Thursday’s practice. Having the surgery done now puts him on pace to be available for summer workouts when they begin in late May.
“If I wait until after spring ball, then that puts us back more and then now we’re in the summer and he’s not able to workout at his max capacity,” Brown said Tuesday. “Then I wouldn’t be helping him work on his mental and physical toughness also ‘cause there’s some things he need to build up mentally to be right and if he becomes a better blocker, he’ll have a good future in life.”
Brown said Gadsden “could practice now, but [he’s] not doing that.” He mentioned that he had him workout the first few weeks of spring ball mainly to work on his blocking, which has been a point of emphasis for the now-redshirt junior ever since he made the transition to tight end ahead of his sophomore season.
Brown also revealed that wide receiver Jackson Meeks is similarly done for the spring as he awaits surgery to fix a hairline fracture.
Gadsden missed the majority of the 2023 season after suffering his injury near the opening of Syracuse’s Week 2 game against Western Michigan. He had his initial surgery in mid-September in Charlotte, North Carolina, starting a 10-12 month recovery process.
Though he could have gone pro following last season, Gadsden said this spring that he knew he would return for another season with the Orange once he knew he was out for the year.
“It wasn’t really weighing no options,” Gadsden said the first day of spring practice.
Having the screws removed from his foot was an optional procedure, Gadsden’s father told syracuse.com in February. It does not disrupt his recovery timeline, and the star is expected to be back to 100% by the start of fall camp in August.
The next major milestone in terms of what he’s able to do on-field will be change-of-direction work.
Gadsden was Syracuse’s leading receiver in 2022. He finished the season with 61 receptions for 969 yards and six touchdowns, garnering first team All-ACC honors and landing on the Biletnikoff Award watch list.
He is expected to be a large part of the Orange’s offense again this fall and has received high praise from the new coaching staff since it took over.
“He’s one of the better football players on our team, and I think one of the better players throughout college football,” Brown said. “Wanna take care of him and do what’s right for him and not just what’s right for us.”
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