Steve Angeli keeps finding the finish line, and Syracuse keeps finding ways to shock ranked teams at home.
On Halloween night in the JMA Wireless Dome, the Orange knocked off No. 19/16 SMU, 30-27, and turned the closing seconds into a field-storming scene as costumed students poured onto the turf. It was Syracuse’s best performance of the season, and it came at a time when the year had started to look like it might slip away.
The win moved Syracuse to 4-4 overall and 2-4 in the ACC, while SMU fell to 6-2 and 4-2. The loss dealt a major blow to the Mustangs’ hopes of reaching the ACC championship game and the College Football Playoff.
Angeli was at the center of it again. For the second straight week, he delivered the game-winning throw, this time connecting with tight end Noah Meyers on a 3-yard touchdown with 17 seconds left. Syracuse had kept the drive alive just four plays earlier when Angeli hit another tight end, David Clement, on a play-action pass on 4th and 1.
That late sequence fit the way Syracuse played the whole night: physical when it needed to be, then trusting Angeli when the moment got biggest.
He finished 21 of 34 for 200 yards and a touchdown, efficient enough to keep the Orange in position and sharp enough to close the door. Brown made his feelings clear afterward.
“Steve’s the guy. That’s the leader,” Brown told ESPN2 on the field after the game.
“Steve’s the guy. In Steve we trust.”
Angeli also showed he was back to full strength after last week’s overtime win at North Carolina. He opened the scoring with a 26-yard scramble after SMU dropped into pass coverage, and later in the second quarter he made a leaping throw that fell incomplete - the kind of play he may not have even attempted during the first three weeks of the season while dealing with bursitis near his Achilles tendon.
Last week, Angeli threw the overtime touchdown against North Carolina and then delivered the game-ending two-point conversion. That victory was Syracuse’s first against an ACC opponent in more than a year. This one came even faster.
The Orange led 20-10 at halftime, but the second half threatened to turn into another painful collapse. Syracuse’s offense managed just 25 total yards after the break until its final two drives. One of those possessions ended with a 26-yard field goal from Tripp Woody, who made all three of his attempts after returning to kicking duties.
Woody’s night mattered, too, for a unit that entered the game near the bottom of the national rankings.
Syracuse leaned on its defense as well, even as the group took some hits. Defensive tackles Rashard Perry and Nissi Ogbebor both left the game twice with injuries, while cornerback Demetres Samuel Jr. was banged up in the first quarter before returning. Both teams also played without a potential starting safety, with SMU missing Tyren Polley Jr. and Syracuse missing Jai Eugene Jr.
Brown’s team has now gone 7-5 against ranked opponents in the dome since 2022, and his record in one-possession games at Syracuse moved to 11-5. On this night, though, the numbers mattered less than the ending: a ranked opponent beaten, a season steadied, and a Halloween crowd storming the field behind a quarterback who keeps delivering when Syracuse needs it most.
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Syracuse Just Gave Fran Browns Season New Life
For a Syracuse team that had been trying to find some traction in the middle of the season, Saturdays 30-27 win over No. 19 SMU at the JMA Wireless Dome felt like more than just a good night. Steve Angelis late touchdown pass to Noah Meyers finished off a victory that had been hard to come by against ranked competition, and it gave the Orange a result they can point to as the kind of turning point a season sometimes needs.
It was Syracuses first win over a ranked opponent since November 2024, and it came at a time when the margin for error in the ACC had already started to shrink. At 4-4 overall and 2-4 in conference play, the Orange still have work to do, but this was the kind of performance that can change the tone around a team and keep the rest of the schedule from feeling like a long climb. [Read more 🡒]
Syracuse Just Delivered Another Ranked Win Fans Wont Forget
Syracuse keeps finding ways to make November feel bigger than the calendar says it should. Under Fran Brown, the Orange knocked off 19th-ranked SMU 30-27 at home, leaning on a defense that never let Kevin Jennings get comfortable even as the Mustangs quarterback still managed 351 yards and two touchdowns. The pressure came from all over, with Keyshawn Johnson and others getting to Jennings and Demetres Samuel Jr. helping swing the game with a forced fumble.
Noah Meyers then delivered the kind of finish that turns a good win into a memorable one, scoring the game-winning touchdown and sending the home crowd into the kind of celebration Syracuse has been chasing in ranked matchups. For a program trying to build real staying power under Brown, this was the sort of result that matters beyond one Saturday, because it showed the Orange can win a tight game against a ranked opponent by making the decisive plays late. [Read more 🡒]
Syracuse Finally Got The Ranked Win Fans Needed But Not Easily
Syracuse finally got the kind of ranked win its fans have been waiting for, but it took every bit of 60 minutes to get there. The Orange knocked off No. 19 SMU 30-27 on a late touchdown pass from Steve Angeli to Noah Meyers, a result that not only snapped their drought against ranked opponents but also pulled them back to .500 at 4-4. It was the sort of game Syracuse had to have, and for a while it looked like the Orange might control it with a strong first half.
Instead, the second half turned into a grind, with SMU pushing back and forcing Syracuse to answer possession after possession. The Orange still found enough from its defense and rushing attack to stay in the fight, and when the moment arrived, Angeli delivered the throw that made the difference. For a team trying to steady its season, it was a much-needed win, even if it came with plenty of stress attached. [Read more 🡒]