Syracuse football’s 2025 campaign fell short of the Orange’s expectations following a Top-25 finish only a year prior. SU’s year was derailed when starting quarterback Steve Angeli suffered a season-ending injury in week four. Syracuse dropped its remaining eight games and finished last in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). After a rough season, the offseason didn’t bode well either with 29 Syracuse players entering the transfer portal. The Cuse responded by landing 18 incoming transfers, but head coach Fran Brown is entering his third season with a new squad, looking to turn things around on the hill.
September 5 | New Hampshire | JMA Wireless Dome
2025: 8-5 (6-2 Coastal Athletic Association)
To open the year, Syracuse welcomes New Hampshire to the Dome for the first time. The Wildcats are a consistent FCS playoff team but UNH enters hostile territory with rookie head coach Scott James. SU holds the advantage entering week one and have a nice opportunity to start a bounce back year smoothly.
Additionally, this will be quarterback Steve Angeli’s first game back after his Achilles tear. Angeli averaged over 325 yards in the air before being sidelined, and he threw a season high 5 touchdowns against Colgate, an FCS school like New Hampshire. Angeli’s return was a question mark entering the offseason, but the redshirt senior says Syracuse is the right fit for him
“I believe in Coach Brown. I believe in the university, I believe in the leadership that we have,” Angeli said at ACC Kickoff, “This is where I’m meant to be and I’m a firm believer of being where your feet are at.”
SU’s air game will be without two of its key 2025 targets, Johntay Cook and Darrell Gill Jr., in 2026, but the Orange get an opportunity to open strong against UNH.
September 12 | California| JMA Wireless Dome
2025: 7-6 (4-4 Atlantic Coast Conference)
Next up, Syracuse stays at home and takes on its first ACC opponent of the year, California. The Cuse last faced Cal in 2024, the Golden Bears first year in the ACC, and won 33-25. However, California jumped up seven spots in-conference last season and are now led by first-year head coach Tosh Lupoi. Lupoi secured Cal’s best recruiting class for the school since 2021, according to 247Sports. To lead this new class, The Golden Bears have sophomore signal-caller Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele who started every game for California and threw for over 3,400 yards as a true freshman. The Cuse and Cal serve as early season tests for each other as they open 2026 ACC play.
September 17 | at Pittsburgh | Acrisure Stadium
2025: 8-5 (6-2 Atlantic Coast Conference)
After its first ACC matchup, SU goes on the road for the first time in 2026 to take on another conference rival in Pittsburgh. The Panthers have had the Orange’s number the last two years, and The Cuse hasn’t taken down Pitt on the road since 2001. Pittsburgh held Syracuse under 140 passing yards and less than 80 on the ground. Luckily for the Orange, two of the Panthers’ top linebackers, Kyle Louis and Rasheem Biles, went to the NFL and transferred to Texas respectively. Aside from getting Angeli back, the Orange also look to two running back transfers to sure up the rushing attack. Former-LSU back Ju’Juan Johnson and Jackson State transfer Ahmad Miller threaten a two-headed ground approach for the Orange in 2026.
October 3 | at Connecticut | Rentschler Field
2025: 9-4, Independent
Syracuse football stays on the road and enters Rentschler Field to take on Connecticut. This marks the third straight year the Orange played the Huskies, but the first in that stretch to be on UConn’s home turf. SU has won the last 6 games between these teams, including a 27-20 overtime victory last season. This season, Connecticut is without its star running back Cam Edwards, who transferred to Michigan State after the 2025 season. The Connecticut native put up over 1,200 yards and 15 touchdowns for his home college last year. Edwards gashed Syracuse for over 120 all-purpose yards the last time SU met UConn, now the Huskies host the Orange without their premier offensive weapon.
October 10 | at Virginia | Scott Stadium
2025: 11-3 (7-1 Atlantic Coast Conference)
In the last stop on SU’s road trip, Syracuse football faces Virginia for the first time in head coach Fran Brown’s tenure. The Cavaliers fell just short of an ACC title, losing 27-20 to Duke, and fielded the second-best scoring defense in 2025. Syracuse lost its two top receiving threats, but Virginia is relying on a large transfer class to repeat its dominance. The 31-man transfer class is headlined by former Michigan safety Brandyn Hillman and projected starting quarterback Beau Pribula from Missouri. The Orange have the benefit of a familiar face leading the offense, but maybe a new signal caller is what the Cavaliers need to finish their ACC championship push.
October 17 | No. 24 Louisville | JMA Wireless Dome
2025: 9-4 (4-4 Atlantic Coast Conference)
Finally returning to the Dome, Syracuse squares off against its first ranked opponent, according to preseason polls, in #24 Louisville. The Orange haven’t played the Cardinals since 2022, so these are two entirely different teams taking the field this season. Louisville’s’ 2025 was a mixed bag, but ended with a bowl win over Toledo. The Cardinals offense was led by third-team-all-ACC running back Isaac Brown. He rushed for over 8 yards a carry and over 850 yards in nine games last year. The now-junior will pose a threat for new Syracuse defensive coordinator Vince Kehres.
October 24 | at North Carolina | Kenan Stadium
2025: 4-8 (2-6 Atlantic Coast Conference)
After just a week at home, Syracuse football travels South to Chapel Hill for its matchup with North Carolina. Last season, UNC met SU in the middle of its eight-game skid and took Syracuse down 27-10. However, The Tar Heels, like the Orange, fell short of their expectations last season. UNC broke the internet by hiring Bill Belichick out of his retirement to coach and manage its football program. The six-time Super Bowl champion brought significant buzz to North Carolina, but on the field failed to produce. The Tar Heels were second-to-last in the ACC in scoring and Belichick’s NFL-proven defensive schemes only equated to a middle-of-the-pack defense. Unfortunately for SU, it had the worst scoring defense in the ACC last year and only sat one place above UNC in offensive rankings. This season is all about reinvention for the Cuse, and North Carolina, this game could test which team is on the right path.
October 31 | No. 19 Southern Methodist | JMA Wireless Dome
2025: 9-4 (6-2 Atlantic Coast Conference)
After a trip south, Syracuse returns home to face its second pre-season ranked opponent, #19 Southern Methodist. The Mustangs have been a contender in the ACC since joining in 2024. SMU was top five in scoring offense and defense in the last two years, and lost in the conference title game in its first year as an ACC school. The Orange fell to the Mustangs 31-18 last year with SMU’s Kevin Jennings throwing a season-high four touchdowns over the SU defense. The senior will return to Dallas to lead Southern Methodist this season, and Syracuse will need to find a way to contain his arm the second time around.
November 7 | Clemson | JMA Wireless Dome
2025: 7-6 (4-4 Atlantic Coast Conference)
One year ago SU went in to Death Valley and took down Clemson 31-24 on the road for the first time in the school’s history. Unfortunately that win cost The Cuse its season when Steve Angeli tore his achilles. The Orange lost every remaining game. Now, the Tigers are traveling North to JMA Wireless for a rematch. Clemson lost nine players to the 2026 NFL Draft, even after a mediocre season, which tied the school record for most picks in a single draft. Tigers head coach Dabo Swinney is under heavy pressure to win after he was unable to make a title run with such a talented team. Will the Cuse be part of the two-time national champion coach’s return to glory or do the Orange repeat last years performance at home?
November 14 | at NC State | Carter-Finley Stadium
2025: 8-5 (4-4 Atlantic Coast Conference)
Syracuse football has beaten NC State in the team’s last two matchups, including a 24-17 victory in the first year of the Fran Brown era. In that game Wolfpack QB C.J. Bailey had played just four college football games. The now-Junior has two years starting under his belt and threw for over 3100 yards and 25 scores last season. Bailey finished fourth in ACC Preseason Player of the Year voting and seems primed for a breakout this year. Luckily for SU, NC State lost five of its key targets; two transferred out, two are now playing professionally, and one is suspended for a PED violation. The Orange look to make it three straight against the Wolfpack in Raleigh this year in the first game of their last road stretch of the season.
November 21 | at Boston College | Alumni Stadium
2025: 2-10 (1-7 Atlantic Coast Conference)
Syracuse’s last road opponent in 2026 has been a monkey on the Cuse’s back for the past three years. Boston College won a single ACC game last season, in that game BC also extended SU’s losing streak to 8 games to end its 2026 campaign. The Eagles and The Orange have been on similar paths with their third year head coaches - a promising first year into a disastrous second season but BC’s Bill O’Brien has gotten the best of Fran Brown both years. This late in the year both of these teams will have an identity it's just a question of who’s made more improvements from the season prior.
November 28 | No. 4 Notre Dame | JMA Wireless Dome
2025: 10-2, Independent
While we’re on the topic of bad losses from last year, Syracuse lost 70-7 in its penultimate game to then #9 Notre Dame, SU’s worst loss since the 19th century. The Irish dominated to the tune of a 35-0 score before the first quarter ended. The Orange averaged under three yards per offensive play and allowed over ten yards on average defensively. Fran Brown took the blame for the historic loss.
“I did not have our team prepared, ready to go in and compete or play at all. Hold me responsible," Brown said.
This year, The Cuse gets an opportunity to end its season on a high note in the Dome against what is likely the highest-ranked opponent SU will face all year.
Syracuse football is back in action on WAER 88.3 Saturday. Tune in McClurg Remodeling Countdown to Kickoff at 11:30 before SU vs. New Hampshire kicks off at noon.
