JoJo Marasco is free now — mostly.

The hate mail has dried up, the distractions are managed and his attitude leads rather than frustrates. The senior knows he wears the same No. 22 donned by former Syracuse greats. Expectations remain, but he’s accepted them. He likes it that way.

He also knows that he hasn’t always lived up to those expectations, until now.

“I’m having a lot of fun,” Marasco said. “Things are really clicking this year.”

Maybe the expectations weren’t fair. But when Marasco came to Syracuse, the Orange needed him. SU lacked his flair, his willingness to try shots, dodges and passes that produced either brilliance or reaming from head coach John Desko.

Regardless, he impressed his national champion teammates immediately.

“The first week of practice as a freshman, I think everybody’s paying attention to see if he can ball or not,” former SU midfielder Jovan Miller said.

Miller sent Marasco a Facebook message welcoming him to SU after watching the prospective attack score a highlight-reel goal in the Under Armour All-American game.

“I think his first week of practice, after a few plays, we were like, ‘Yeah, he can ball,’” Miller said.

Right away, Marasco started throwing behind-the-back passes and shots. Desko would yell. But it was that willingness to try what his teammates wouldn’t that made him special. Even as a freshman, Marasco was up for anything.

That carried off of the field, too, where Marasco struggled to resist temptations to party before frustrated older teammates reined him in.

“Being on the lacrosse team, you get a lot of publicity and you have a lot of friends and stuff,” Marasco said, “and it’s tough seeing all these guys constantly going out and going to the bars and hanging out, and you got to just kind of do your homework.”

Chris Daniello, a senior captain during Marasco’s freshman year, knew Marasco from back home because he lived in the next town. Marasco grew up watching Daniello, and they eventually played together.

Daniello knew Marasco wanted to be great. It’s why Marasco asked for the No. 22 jersey as a raw freshman. Daniello, who Marasco refers to as an older brother, spelled it out for him.

“You can definitely get lost in the mix with the party scene and all that type of stuff,” Daniello said. “You got to remember what you’re there for and what you want to get out of your career.”

So Marasco cut back, and his talent shined through. Just as he does now, he starred with the ball in his stick. It’s his toy, and he plays with it better than almost anyone.

But he wasn’t done rubbing his teammates the wrong way. Miller recalls a practice after SU beat Army in 2011 — a game in which the sophomore Marasco had run out the clock, evading Army defenders until time expired. During practice, though, Miller overheard Marasco say to captain Joel White, “I’m the reason we won that game in the first place.”

Miller assumed he misheard Marasco until attack Stephen Keogh recounted the same conversation.

“There was one point where we were like, ‘JoJo, you need to relax because your ego’s getting out of control,’” Miller said.

Today, Marasco’s a cool-headed captain. He’s the kind of player Desko compliments for making the right plays on the field, and saying the right things off of it.

Even last year, though, he wasn’t all there yet. Top-heavy Syracuse had graduated a two-time national champion senior class. Always the most talented, Marasco became the best of what remained offensively. It was his attack to lead.

But when Miller texted Marasco, asking how the team was progressing, he only got vague, uncertain responses: SU could be good. The Orange seemed OK. To Miller, it seemed like Marasco didn’t know.

A 9-8 2012 season and a first-round NCAA tournament exit opened Marasco up to scathing criticism. He’d get hateful emails from angry fans. Marasco told his father, Richard Marasco. Both agreed it was his burden to bear.

“Twenty-two comes with the baggage of expectations,” Richard Marasco said. “A lot of people in the lacrosse world were like, ‘Who’s this kid to come in and think he can take this number.’ That type of thing. Kind of legitimate questions.

“And I guess some of the things could be a lot nastier than that. And, hey, it’s the truth. When you take that kind of responsibility on, people are looking for you and expecting you to perform.”

So this season, Marasco helped rebuild the team’s chemistry. The senior class took an RV trip to Ohio, has played pick-up football at Manley Field House and regularly heads to Varsity or Chipotle for post-practice meals. Marasco even gives tips to the next generation of playmakers, like Kevin Rice.

“You can tell it’s his senior year,” SU midfielder Scott Loy said, “it’s kind of his last go at it.”

Marasco is at ease on the field now. He can no longer hide behind veterans. He’s done overplaying, forcing passes or dodging away from open teammates. Marasco insists he’s not a player the offense needs to be built around. This year, it’s simply flowed around him.

During halftime of Saturday’s Big East championship, Marasco had no points and no assists. But SU had eight goals, and each time Marasco caught the ball, he looked perfectly calm, rotating passes through the offense that was well on its way to picking apart Villanova.

Now, rest, nutrition and “taking care of your body” are the mantras by which Marasco lives. He’s as comfortable as he’s ever been in an Orange uniform. Still, he’s expected to deliver a national championship. The pressure of the jersey and its number is constant, but that’s what he asked for and who he is.

“It’s been there the whole time,” Marasco said. “I struggled with that. … Some things maybe didn’t go my way a couple years, but other than that, it’s finally all coming together.”

Published on May 9, 2013 at 12:21 am

Contact Jacob: jmklinge@syr.edu | @Jacob_Klinger_