It was spooky in the Dome in Syracuse football’s (3-6, 1-5 Atlantic Coast Conference) 27-10 loss to North Carolina (3-5, 1-3 ACC). The biggest scare? The offense seemed to be a ghost. The Orange were held to just 147 total yards.
“A lot of times you guys want to blame the quarterback,” SU head coach Fran Brown said while addressing the media. “But there are ten other people out there, there are calls from a coordinator, and sometimes things that come from a head football coach… There are a lot of things we have to do to adapt to their playing styles.”
The second-year head man elected to go with true freshman walk-on Joseph Filardi at quarterback.
“I’ve been preparing every week as if I would play,” Filardi said. “That’s kind of what you have to do, because you really never know what’s going to happen. So I just trust the coaching and try to do what they say.”
But he struggled. The SU lacrosse recruit went 4/18 on pass attempts for 39 yards. Brown switched from Rickie Collins to Filardi to try to give his team a lift.
It's been a rough start for @CuseFootball quarterback Joseph Filardi.@SamuelReisTV detailed the freshman's eighth straight incompletion.
— WAER Sports (@WAERSports) November 1, 2025
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“We’re just trying to get something new to happen,” Brown said. “Just trying to do something to get something new to happen. It was a month straight of football… and we’re just trying to get a new spark or something different to be able to move, give our team a little momentum.”
There was definitely a spark initially. SU’s defense came to play, with a scoop and score on UNC’s third drive that would carry the Orange to a 10-6 halftime lead.
If the @CuseFootball offense can't get it done, go to the defense.@Hudson_Ridley narrated linebacker Anwar Sparrow's scoop and score.
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But that was it. Syracuse was held scoreless the rest of the night.
Brown decided to open up the QB competition this week after starter Rickie Collins threw seven interceptions to just four touchdowns during his four starts.
“In practice, everyone got an equal amount of reps,” Brown said. “He got a lot of reps, and I think he made the best of them… It was a little fast for him at times, but he’ll keep getting better.”
And that next chance to get better is next week on the road against No. 10 Miami, a top ten test for the true freshman. Hear how he fares next Saturday at 3:30 on WAER.