Although the college football season just ended, it ended quite some time ago for Syracuse fans. The Orange capped off a disappointing 5-7 (2-6) season with an exciting 39-30 overtime win over Wake Forest inside the Dome, giving some hope for the future. Trill Williams even added a potential play of the year candidate to finish it off.
But even with the excitement of the last game, 2019 left a very bitter taste in most Syracuse fans’ mouths, including me. The Orange have now hired defensive coordinator Zach Arnett from San Diego State, a defense that has been incredible under his watch. The team also hired Sterlin Gilbert as offensive coordinator, trying to fix the most sacked college football team a season ago. But this is not a big preview, rather a look at the 2020 Syracuse football schedule that was released today by the ACC and what jumps out to me.
The first jump out is a week one, Friday night road game against Boston College. As Cuse fans may remember, the last time the Orange opened in conference play was in 2005, a Big East game against West Virginia. The game kicked off the Greg Robinson era and was actually played on a Sunday in front of over 45,000 Orange faithful. The Orange lost that game, 15-7, and would finish the season a measly 1-10. This time around, it will be on the road against rival BC in Chesnut Hill. The Orange are 4-3 against the Eagles since joining the ACC in 2013. No cupcakes to start this season, it’s right into a rivalry.
The nonconference slate
Next, come the “cupcakes”. Rutgers is an old Big East foe, but they have been awful of late. However, they did hire Greg Schiano, which could bring some momentum for them. Colgate is Colgate. Western Michigan-Syracuse has been one of the more exciting and high scoring games each season. Hammer the over in that one, but the Orange should be able to take care of business. With a break in between and a matchup with Louisville, Liberty then rounds out the Cuse nonconference slate. No real exciting matchups there and Syracuse should come out 4-0, or 3-1 at worst, in nonconference play.
Into conference play
Home conference play begins with Lousiville. The Cardinals own the all-time series 11-7, but the two schools have exchanged blowout wins the last two seasons, with Lousiville getting the edge last season at home.
This season’s matchup with Clemson comes on the road. As many experts and I would say, the Tigers should enter 2020 as the No. 1 ranked team in the country, returning QB Trevor Lawrence and RB Travis Etienne to lead an explosive offense paired with a great defense. Last time the Orange were in Death Valley, it took a late Tigers comeback to win 27-23 in 2018.
After that, conference play is pretty manageable. A home game with Georgia Tech on Halloween followed by a road game against Wake Forest isn’t necessarily easy wins but they are certainly winnable. Then comes a Thursday night game with Florida State. The Orange handled the Seminoles, 30-7, at home in 2018. There’s really no telling what Florida State will be next season, but I’d expect they are trending in the right direction under the guidance of new head coach Mike Norvell. The last time Syracuse played a home game on Thursday night was all the way back in 2011, Week One against Wake Forest when the Orange were still in the Big East. The Orange would win that game 36-29 in overtime. Florida State should be the biggest crowd of the season and the best home opponent in the 2020 Syracuse football schedule.
Final thoughts
I didn’t think I had to go through each and every game in 2020 but rather wanted to look at what caught my eye in the schedule. Overall, it’s a very easy nonconference slate paired with manageable conference games to make up the 2020 Syracuse football schedule. It’s too early for me to talk record predictions, but Syracuse should be able to make a bowl game in 2020.