Affolder made up his mind early for Syracuse

By Doug Binder and John Nepolitan of DyeStat

Noah Affolder of Carthage NY, one of the top runners in the Class of 2017, has made an early commitment to reigning NCAA cross country champion Syracuse.

Affolder won the Manhattan Invitational Eastern States race last fall at Van Cortlandt Park and was 15th at the Foot Locker national championships. 

This winter, Affolder ran a season's best 4:09.88 in the mile at the Millrose Games, which he lost by one hundredth of a second.

Affolder has grown up in a military family and began his high school running career in Illinois. He is not yet sure where he might go to school and run as a senior. 

But he does know where he wants to be for college.

"When I stepped onto the campus, I fell in love immediately," Affolder ssaid. "I met the coaches and the team before they won a national title in cross country... I have talked to their guys almost every day since then and visited them twice since my first visit. Every time I would go back I kept telling myself that this is where I wanted to be for five years!"

Affolder decided to circumvent the usual recruiting process and go with his gut. 

"I chose to commit now because I felt that talking to (other) coaches knowing I wouldn't attend their school was wrong and disrespectful," Affolder said. "I thought about the University of Kentucky, Stanford and Pitt, but in the end, I knew it was going to be Syracuse."

Affolder rose to prominence in two years at Carthage in upstate New York, but he expects to move over the summer. 

"My family is unsure (about the move) because my father has not received orders to our next assignment," he said.