Syracuse — ACC
HC
Fran Brown · JMA Wireless Dome · Syracuse, NY · 49,057 cap
PPA off / def
0.05 / 0.27
2025
Class rank
#35
class of 2026
Returning PPA
35%
returning production
| 1992 |
OSU W 35–12 | away |
| 1991 |
OSU L 17–24 | away |
| 1988 |
OSU W 26–9 | Columbus |
| 1980 |
OSU W 31–21 | Columbus |
| 1979 |
OSU W 31–8 | Columbus |
| 1911 |
OSU L 0–6 | Columbus |
2026 schedule
2025 results (3–9)
Statistical comps — 2025 Syracuse's closest analogs
Nearest neighbors by z-scored success rate, explosiveness, run rate & havoc (offense + defense), 2015–25.
2025 leaders
Transfer portal — 2026 (19 in / 29 out)
Origins
Jim Brown wore 44, then Ernie Davis wore it to the 1959 national title and became the first Black Heisman winner, then died of leukemia at 23 without playing a professional down. Floyd Little wore it third.
Founded 1870 · Founded by the Methodist church after a split with Genesee College · first football 1889 · defined by Ernie Davis
All-time record
All-time
712–556–42
1891–2025
Win %
56.0%
134 seasons played
Winning seasons
77
57% of seasons
| Best seasons | W | L | Conference |
|---|
| 1987 | 11 | 0 | FBS Independents |
| 1959 | 11 | 0 | FBS Independents |
| 1992 | 10 | 2 | Big East |
| 1991 | 10 | 2 | Big East |
| 1988 | 10 | 2 | FBS Independents |
Season records from CollegeFootballData, which is why the span starts at 1891 — that is where its coverage of this program begins, not necessarily the first year it fielded a team.
Play-calling tendencies (2025 · garbage time excluded)
| Situation | Plays | Run % | Success % | Nat'l | Avg yds | Expl % |
|---|
| 1st down | 279 | 56% |
38% | 114 of 136 | 5.3 | 10% |
| 2nd down | 209 | 41% |
40% | 75 of 136 | 5.4 | 10% |
| 3rd & short (≤3) | 33 | 85% |
61% | — | 3.7 | 6% |
| 3rd & medium (4–7) | 44 | 25% |
39% | — | 4.4 | 9% |
| 3rd & long (8+) | 64 | 19% |
11% | — | 3.1 | 9% |
| 4th down | 27 | 48% |
52% | — | 5.8 | 11% |
147 drives · 28% ended in points · 7.2 plays and 32.8 yards per drive · 0.32 PPA per drive
Success: 50% of yardage needed on 1st, 70% on 2nd, 100% on 3rd/4th. Explosive: 12+ yd rush / 16+ yd pass. National rank is shown only for 1st and 2nd down, where every team has 100+ plays; the later buckets average 18-43 and a rank there would be noise.
League leaderboard →Most valuable plays (by PPA, 2025)
| Wk | Opp | Play | Yds | PPA |
|---|
| 2 | UConn |
Steve Angeli pass complete to Justus Ross-Simmons for 53 yds for a TD (Two-Point Conversio… |
53 | 6.41 |
| 3 | Colgate |
Steve Angeli pass complete to Darrell Gill Jr. for 43 yds for a TD (Tripp Woody KICK) |
43 | 5.10 |
| 6 | SMU |
Rickie Collins pass complete to Justus Ross-Simmons for 52 yds to the SMU 18 for a 1ST dow… |
52 | 4.49 |
| 4 | Clemson |
Steve Angeli pass complete to Johntay Cook for 59 yds to the CLEM 31 for a 1ST down |
59 | 4.34 |
| 8 | Pittsburgh |
Rickie Collins pass complete to Johntay Cook for 26 yds to the PITT 37 for a 1ST down |
26 | 4.01 |
| 3 | Colgate |
Steve Angeli pass complete to Darien Williams for 26 yds for a TD (Tripp Woody KICK) |
26 | 3.83 |
| 6 | SMU |
Rickie Collins pass complete to Johntay Cook for 38 yds to the SMU 45 for a 1ST down |
38 | 3.59 |
| 1 | Tennessee |
Steve Angeli pass complete to Johntay Cook for 29 yds to the TENN 6 for a 1ST down |
29 | 3.55 |