Miami Gardens, Fla. -- This past December, Dino Babers took a crucial flight down to Miami.
The Syracuse football head coach went to North Miami Beach High School not to recruit, but to secure a different type of commitment -- a higher level of dedication from senior wide receiver Steve Ishmael.
That started with a message to NMB coach Jeff Bertani.
"It was like, 'Listen, Jeff, for us to be successful, he's got to buy into us and sometimes we don't feel that,'" Bertani recalled Babers saying on Saturday.
"... He wanted Steve to know, he wanted me to know, that we need Steve to be comfortable for this to work like it is this year.