They knew it before it started.
In Syracuse football head coach Fran Brown’s second year at the helm, the Orange were set to face the toughest schedule in the conference in 2025, good for fifth in the country, per college football writer Phil Steele. But after going a historic 10-1 in Brown’s inaugural year, securing two new quarterbacks in the offseason, and retaining both their offense and defensive coordinators, many members of Orange Nation were optimistic that 2024’s momentum would carry into the new year.
Safe to say that wasn’t the case.
After falling to Tennessee in its season opener, SU bounced back with three straight wins, including its first-ever victory in Death Valley. But the program's biggest win of the season also came with its biggest loss: starting QB Steve Angeli tore his achilles at Clemson.
From there, the Orange cycled through quarterbacks while the losses piled up. Syracuse suffered eight straight double-digit defeats to close the year — the first time in history the program experienced such a stretch — capped by a 22-point defeat to the worst team in the conference.
A rough season like that begged for change. SU’s player roster shifted, and so did its coaching staff, leaving plenty to sort through in the offseason. But before examining who’s new, who’s gone, and who’s stepping into large roles, this preview starts where the program itself does: with Fran Brown.
The Pilot
Brown made quite the name for himself in his first year in Syracuse. Not only did SU’s headman lead the Cuse to just its third double-digit win season since the start of the century and introduce D.A.R.T. to the 315, but he also made “Winners Get Washed” part of the program’s vocabulary.
A hugely successful inaugural season set the bar high for year two, but an early season-ending injury to SU’s starting QB made that standard difficult to reach. Brown and the Orange did a full 180 in 2025, going from a historic 10-3 campaign to a 3-9 finish. That marked the steepest year-to-year decline in wins the program has ever seen.
After Syracuse’s season finale, a 34-12 loss to Boston College, Brown made it clear he wouldn’t allow the program to stay in that position.
“We will never be in the storm that we’re in right now,” he said.
Only time will tell if Brown can steer the Orange back on course, but one thing’s for sure: Brown’s been busy this offseason. He signed the highest ranked recruiting class in program history, which included five-star wide receiver Calvin Russel III, SU’s highest-rated recruit in 25 years.
Brown also brought in help through the transfer portal. That included three new quarterbacks — Malachi Nelson (University of Texas at El Paso), Amari Odom (Kennesaw State), and Danny Lauter (Georgetown) — as Syracuse looks to avoid another season defined by instability under center.
“I think we’re really competitive,” Brown said after the 2026 spring game. “I think our leaders have stepped up all the way. They love to compete.”
But with new players in place, Brown can’t guide the program alone. Around him, SU’s coaching staff looks different, too.
The Play-Callers
Amid the turnover, one key piece of Syracuse’s staff remains in place: offensive coordinator Jeff Nixon. The Orange extended a new multi-year contract to the former NFL coach in the 2025 offseason, which ESPN reported has pushed him to become among the best paid coordinators in the conference.
Nixon helped improve SU’s offense by 124.3 average total yards a game and 10.54 points a game between the 2023 and 2024 seasons. But 2025 was a completely different story.
By the year’s end, Syracuse finished 106th in total offense per ESPN, averaging 340.4 yards per game. Comparably, in 2024, the Orange finished seventh in total offense and 21st in points per game.
But while the offense looks to rebound under a familiar face, Syracuse’s D-line starts fresh under new defensive coordinator Vince Kehres, Toledo’s former defensive coordinator and linebackers coach.
“I didn’t think we had an identity on defense,” Brown said, referencing last year’s struggles.
The unit finished 125th in total defense under former defensive coordinator Elijah Robinson 427.7 yards and 31.5 points a game. Plus, the Orange sat in last place in scoring defense of Power Four teams, surrendering 34.9 points a game.
Robinson brought recruiting credibility and familiarity with Brown to Syracuse, but the on-field results never followed consistently. The Orange found themselves well outside the national top half in both total defense and scoring defense for the second straight year.
In early December 2025, Brown demoted Robinson to co-defensive coordinator and defensive line coach. Robinson went on to leave the program altogether and headed to Texas A&M as their co-defensive coordinator and defensive line coach, where he play-called prior to his stint in the 315.
Brown hired Kehres just five days later. And statistically, the two-time Broyles award nominee’s (2022, 2025) resume is hard to ignore.
In seven seasons as Mount Union’s head coach, Kheres went 95-6 (.941), winning more games than any college coach at any level over that period. He also won two national championships and led the Purple Raiders to the national title game five times.
At Toledo, under Kheres, the Rockets’ defense ranked second in the nation in total defense in 2025, allowing just 247.8 yards per game. Only three teams allowed fewer points a game than Toledo in 2025: Ohio State, Indiana, and Texas Tech, all of which earned top-four seeds in the College Football playoff.
The Rockets also gave up just 12.7 points a game; and ranked fifth in passing defense, eight in rushing defense, and ninth in sacks. For Brown, the expectation is simple.
“I want to see us tackle the guy with the football,” Brown said. “And not allow them in the end zone so much.”
Kheres’ track record suggests that Syracuse has a reason to expect a defensive jump. But those numbers will only matter if they translate quickly in the ACC.
John Scott Jr. also joins the team as the assistant head coach, defensive coordinator, and defensive line coach. Scott Jr. brings 25 years of coaching experience to Salt City, including work in the NFL and most recently at Clemson.
So far, SU’s defensive returners are liking the new leadership.
“I feel like everything is easier,” Davien Kerr said, who’s shifted from nickel cornerback to safety. “Everything is chained together. We’ll have a set of plays that’s correlated with other sets of plays. And the way they teach is way easier than how it was last season.”
And to wrap up the trifecta, in place of Ricky Brumfield, Syracuse welcomes former Bowling Green special teams coordinator Alex Bayer to lead SU’s third phase. Bayer is the third Orange special teams coordinator hired in Brown’s three seasons.
Syracuse’s field goal percentage increased from 59.1% to 85.7% in 2025, with punter Jack Stonehouse earning first-team All-ACC nods under Brumfield. Still, Bayer got the call after Brumfield’s dismissal and has coached several successful players of his own. Most recently, under Bayer’s guidance, return specialist Cameron Pettaway became a 2025 Freshman All-American with his nation-leading return average (33.0 yards per return).
“He sees special teams in a different way,” Brown said of Bayer, a 2024 Broyles Award nominee. “His teams have been top-three in the country in blocks over the last three years.”
The Supporting Cast
Brown’s staff changes didn’t stop with the coordinator spots. Syracuse also reshaped several position groups and brought in Sean Ryan as the quarterbacks coach. The two-time Super Bowl Champion coach most-recently hails from the 305, serving as the Dolphins’ senior defensive assistant and outside linebackers coach.
Juan Castillo brings over 40 years of coaching experience across the NFL and collegiate levels to the Orange as the new head of the offensive line. SU’s O-line struggled last season: its overall pass-blocking grade ranked third-worst in the conference (55.9), its run-blocking grade ranked 15th-worst of Power Four Teams (56.1), and its rushing yards allowed per game ranked 108th of the 136 FBS teams (123.2).
Josh Gattis was promoted from offensive specialist to wide receivers coach, following Myles White’s firing, and will be the first to introduce Calvin Russel III to the college game.
Other additions include Perry Eliano (Toledo) and Brandon Napoleon (Wofford) as the defensive and assistant defensive backs coaches, respectively; Jeremy Hawkins (Georgia State) as the edge coach; and Marucs Walker (Towson) as the nickels coach.
Fran Brown and the Syracuse coaching staff kick off their 2026 campaign on September 5th and host New Hampshire at noon. Follow @WAERSports on X for more offseason coverage of Syracuse football.