It’s officially game week. After a long offseason, Tennessee football is just five days away from opening up its 2025 season against Syracuse. The Vols are pretty significant favorites in the season opener in what’s essentially a must-win game if Tennessee is going to make it back to the College Football Playoff.
What do you need to know about Syracuse entering the game? And why are expectations low for the Orange after a strong first season under Fran Brown. Taking a look here.
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How Syracuse Fared A Season Ago
Syracuse football’s 2024 season was a smashing success under first year head coach Fran Brown. The Orange went 10-3 (5-3 ACC) marking their first 10-win season since 2018 and the program’s second since 2001.
The Orange went 9-3 in the regular season and ended it with a bang, upsetting Miami 42-38 to end the Hurricanes’ College Football Playoff hopes.
Syracuse had an electric offense, leading the nation in passing yards per game and ranking 21st in scoring offense. They finished the season on a roll with four straight wins, scoring 30-plus points in all four games, 42 points in the upset win over Miami and 52 points in a bowl win over Washington State.
Why Expectations Are Low For Syracuse Entering 2025
Syracuse won 10 games under a first year head coach a season ago. That alone would indicate that expectations would be high for the Orange entering the 2025 season. But that isn’t the case.
DraftKings set Syracuse regular season over/under win total at just 5.5. And even then the over is +165 and the under is -200. Tennessee is also 14-point favorites against the Orange in the season opener. So why are expectations so low for Syracuse after a strong 2024 season?
Syracuse loses a ton off of its strong offense from a season ago. Gone is starting quarterback Kyle McCord who led the country in passing. McCord’s top two receivers from a season ago are gone as well with Jackson Meeks off to the NFL and Trebor Pena transferring to Penn State.
Starting tight end Oronde Gadsen, who totaled 934 receiving yards a season ago, is also off to the NFL. The same is the case for starting running back LeQuint Allen who rushed for 1,021 yards and added 521 receiving yards a season ago. The Orange also lost three of five starting offensive linemen from a season ago.
Simple synopsis— that strong offense from a season ago returns very few contributors.
Syracuse defense was not very good a season ago, ranking 96th nationally by allowing 29.6 points per game. But even that group lost a ton of its top contributors including its top two sack leaders, two of its three leading tacklers and the players that recorded seven of its 11 interceptions.
The Common Thread For Tennessee And Syracuse
One of Tennessee’s biggest disadvantages early in the season is how little time starting quarterback Joey Aguilar has spent in the offense. But Syracuse is in the exact same spot.
The Orange went into the transfer landed Notre Dame’s Steve Angeli in the spring portal window before naming him their starting quarterback last week. Angeli spent two seasons at Notre Dame where he played sparingly. He combined to complete 58-of-80 passes for 504 yards, seven touchdowns and an interception.
Time will tell how good Angeli will be. He certainly has the potential to be solid but it’s not the bet circumstances ot hit the ground running. There’s also not a ton of proven receivers that he’ll be throwing to.
His top pass catchers project to be Darrell Gill Jr. (570 yards and two touchdowns), Justus Ross-Simmons (202 yards and two touchdowns) and Johntay Cook (137 yards and two touchdowns at Texas).
What Josh Heupel Said About The Orange Monday
Opening statement
“Game week is finally here. Get a chance to go play in the Aflac Kickoff Game in Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Great venue, great event, and great opportunity for us to go play a really good football program in Syracuse. We got 20 players from the state of Georgia, 15 guys from the Atlanta area. They’re going to have a lot of family and friends at the game, so great way for us to kick it off and find out where we’re at.”
On the challenges of preparing for Syracuse’s offense
“A lot of different personnel. All their shift trade motions. The communication is going to be important. I said it earlier, but, you know, tying all three levels of your defense together is going to be important in this. You gotta be able to win one on one matchups with the way that they spread the field, too. That’s in your secondary, but that’s also winning one on one matchups up front.”
