Syracuse football has a fresh dose of preseason skepticism to pin up in the locker room.
At the ACC Kickoff event in Charlotte, N.C., two weeks ago, head coach Fran Brown made it clear he knows what people are saying about the Orange heading into the 2026 season. On Tuesday afternoon, the league gave him even more fuel. In the ACC’s preseason media poll, Syracuse was slotted 14th in a 17-team football race, with Notre Dame competing as an independent.
The full order of finish had Miami at No. 1, followed by SMU, Louisville, Clemson, Georgia Tech, Virginia, N.C. State, Virginia Tech, Pittsburgh, Duke, Florida State, California, Wake Forest, Syracuse, North Carolina, Boston College and Stanford.
Miami was the runaway favorite to win the conference, and that tracks with the Hurricanes’ run to the College Football Playoff national championship game last season, where they lost to Indiana. Plenty of league watchers also see Miami as the ACC’s best shot at making the 12-team CFP again this fall.
Syracuse’s placement is hardly a shock after a 3-9 season, but it still leaves the Orange buried near the bottom of the league in the eyes of the preseason voters. Stanford drew one of the stranger results in the poll, landing a first-place vote while also being picked last.
From Syracuse’s side, the path back into the conversation starts with health and improvement. If quarterback Steve Angeli is healthy and the defense takes a major step forward, the Orange looks more like a team that could fight its way into the No. 6 through No. 10 range than one stuck at No. 14.
In Other News...
Syracuse Fans May Finally Feel Different About The Position That Sank Last Season
Quarterback is the one spot around Syracuse that seems to inspire more comfort than concern heading into the new season, which is a notable shift after last years struggles there. The Orange have rebuilt the room with experienced additions Amari Odom, Danny Lauter and Malachi Nelson, alongside returning options such as Steve Angeli, giving the staff a much deeper group to sort through than it had a year ago.
Fran Brown has made it clear the positions value goes beyond the starter, especially after seeing how quickly a season can be affected when the depth chart gets tested. With several quarterbacks in the mix and more proven college experience in the room, Syracuse at least appears better equipped to handle the kind of emergency that exposed it before, even if the final answer at the position is still waiting to be settled. [Read more 🡒]
Syracuse Fans Just Got A Troubling Calvin Russell III Sign
Calvin Russell III was one of the names Syracuse fans had circled when looking ahead to the future of the football program, but his absence from the newly released College Football 27 roster is the kind of small detail that can still catch attention. For a top recruit, being left off a game roster usually does not mean much on its own, but it does invite a closer look when there is already uncertainty around where he stands entering the season.
Russells situation has been unsettled since spring practice, and that context helps explain why his name might not be there yet. The bigger question for Syracuse is not a video game listing, of course, but whether the young receiver will be available this fall or end up taking a redshirt year, leaving the Orange to wait a little longer on one of their most intriguing additions. [Read more 🡒]
Syracuse Is Already Turning Heads With Another New York Prospect
Syracuses efforts to build a stronger in-state recruiting pipeline picked up another familiar name when Dontre Hampton, a running back from Bennett in Buffalo, landed a scholarship offer from the Orange. Hampton has already spent time around the program at a Syracuse 7v7 camp, and the connection was made through running backs coach Dennis Thomas, giving the staff another chance to evaluate a New York prospect who has been on its radar.
For Hampton, the offer carried extra meaning because Syracuse was his first major ACC opportunity, a milestone he viewed as a blessing. It also fits the broader push under Fran Brown to keep top New York talent from leaving the state, a theme that has already shown up with other homegrown targets such as Elijah Kimble. Hampton said he appreciates the program and the way Syracuse has recruited him, with the Orange now trying to turn that early interest into something more lasting. [Read more 🡒]