SYRACUSE - After a week on the job, Syracuse football coach Doug Marrone has made great strides in filling out his staff.

Since being hired to succeed Greg Robinson, Marrone has retained linebackers coach Dan Conley and defensive line coach Derrick Jackson, and he's hired New York native John Anselmo as secondary coach.

On Friday, Marrone introduced Rob Spence as his new offensive coordinator. Spence has been an offensive coordinator for 14 seasons at four different schools, including Clemson, Toledo, Louisiana Tech and Hofstra. Spence, who grew up in the New York City suburb of Pelham and graduated from Iona, and the Bronx-born Marrone have been friends since 1992.

“I think when you look at his overall career and the statistics and the amount of things that he's accomplished in that position, you're going to see a lot of great things,” Marrone said. “The one thing I was looking for at the coordinator position ... is someone who has experience in play-calling. We're always looking for that perfect call or the call that's going to change the game. I really think that he's going to do that for our football team.”

Spence was on the Clemson staff of Tommy Bowden when Bowden decided in mid-October to leave the school. Dabo Swinney, who replaced Bowden, fired Spence on Dec. 1 and took over play-calling.

The Orange certainly are in familiar hands now. Marrone and Conley are former players at Syracuse, Anselmo was a graduate assistant and received his master's degree at Syracuse, and Spence's stepfather grew up in suburban Solvay.

“The Syracuse ties will always be the focus, and it's going to continue to be the focus as long as I'm the head coach,” said Marrone, who quit his job as offensive coordinator for the New Orleans Saints after he was hired by his alma mater.

Spence also has ties to the university. His stepfather's brother - Thomas Spillett - played for the Orange in the early 1960s.

“This is an exciting moment for me and my family. It's a chance to come back home,” Spence said. “I saw this as a great opportunity to fulfill a dream. When I was finishing my college career, I remember going into my stepdad's office and finding a bunch of boxes of Syracuse memorabilia. There were playbooks from when Ben Schwartzwalder was the head football coach. I was just in another world.

“I started to get excited about someday arriving here and coaching here,” said Spence, who already was evaluating the current roster and identifying recruiting needs. “I thought someday that maybe this would happen.”

Marrone said he was speaking with several other coaching candidates but he did not want to establish a timetable for completing his staff.

“I've seen decisions made out of haste and I'm not going to do that to this program,” Marrone said. “I have too much responsibility right now and too much responsibility for the people in the community, the alumni, the university, to make a poor decision.”

Marrone also said he was optimistic about recruiting. Both Anselmo and Spence have strong metropolitan New York ties.

“There's an excitement right now,” Marrone said. “We might not get that instant result, with maybe turning a kid (to come to Syracuse) or getting a three-star or four-star (athlete). I'm not big on the ratings now, I'm more concerned what the ratings are once we get them on our football team.”