The biggest challenge on SU’s 2024 schedule
The first five games under Fran Brown all seem manageable for Syracuse Orange football, but there are several more challenging opponents on their schedule in the near future. After leaving the building like Elvis in Las Vegas, SU will head back to the Atlantic Coast to take on one of their most persistent conference foes – a consistently ranked program that is in shape to stay that way this fall.
NC State Wolfpack
School: North Carolina State University
Nickname: Wolfpack
Mascots: Mr. and Mrs. Wuf
#BRAND Slogans: #1Pack1Goal, #GoPack, #StrengthInThePack
Alternate #BRAND Slogan Suggestions: #AllThePackPuns, #RaleighHouse or “UNC’s second-most-hated rival”
Recommended Blog: Backing the Pack
Conference: ACC
History vs. Syracuse: A 13-3 all-time record against SU is diluted just a bit by some recent Orange upsets. A victory over NC State always seems to mark a big accomplishment for ‘Cuse: 2013 was their first conference win in the ACC, 2018 got them into the AP Top-25 for the first time in 16 years, and the last meeting in 2022 made them bowl-eligible with a 6-0 start. Just don’t think about their late 90s games or a serious C’mon Man! moment in 2020….
Photo by Lance King/Getty Images
Coach: Dave Doeren, 12th season. Aside from the few juggernauts of the sport, there’s not more you can ask from a college football coach than perennial Top-25 candidate. That’s exactly what Doeren’s Pack has become, qualifying for nine bowl games in the past 10 years and peaking at #10 in the 2021 campaign. In short, exactly what the Orange hope Fran Brown can do for them. NC State picked up Doeren after he led Northern Illinois to consecutive MAC championships and national recognition. Before that, he had defensive assistant stints in Wisconsin, Kansas, Montana, USC, and his alma mater Drake.
2023 Record: 9-4 (6-2)
Recapping Last Season:
The Pack lost both times they faced ranked opponents – Week 2 vs. #10 Notre Dame and Week 7 at #17 Duke – as well as vs. eventually-ranked Louisville in Week 5, but it was smooth sailing through the rest of the schedule. Their defining performance was holding on to beat a downtrodden Clemson squad, which kicked off a five-game win streak through the end of November. While most games were close, three of the final four victories were by multiple scores. At the Pop-Tarts Bowl in Orlando, #25 Kansas State snapped that strong stretch with a 28-19 win, but NC State still finished #20 in the final AP Poll.
Brennan Armstrong transferred in to take one last stab at salvaging his pro aspirations, but the 5th-year QB was unable to recreate the magic of his 2021 conquest with Virginia. While he led the team with 665 rushing yards, his continued struggles in the pass game led to being benched for a third of the season. To his credit, he eventually returned and improved from a 5/6 passing TD/INT ratio to 6/1 down the stretch. The number two rusher on the squad was also its number one receiver: true freshman Kevin Concepcion. KC earned both All-American and ACC Rookie of the Year honors for his 1,159 total offensive yards and NC State freshman record 10 touchdowns. The rest of the unit was more quantity than quality – though some of that blame again goes to the quarterback shuffle.
Heavy is the hand that the Pack defense played in their success last fall. They only picked up 33 sacks and 24 turnovers while holding opponents to just over 20 PPG – not FSU numbers, but still ones that stand out in the conference. The trinity of LBs Payton Wilson (138 tackles, six sacks, three interceptions, forced fumble and two recoveries) and Jaylon Scott (75 tackles, two sacks, forced fumble and recovery), and S Sean Brown (66 tackles, two sacks, five pass breakups and two interceptions) were all vital components of a feared 3-3-5. Meanwhile, DL Davin Vann and Red Hibbler combined for 12 sacks, and CB Aydan White broke up 10 passes, picked off two more, and went a second straight season without allowing a single touchdown in man coverage. TL;DR: these guys can ball. Brayden Narveson was 18/23 on field goal tries, with three misses coming from kicks over 50 yards.
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2024 Season Outlook
The Wolfpack begin the campaign with four out of five games against non-conference foes: home games against Western Carolina, Louisiana Tech, and Northern Illinois, plus a pseudo-home game in Charlotte versus Tennessee. Wake Forest, SU, Stanford, and Duke visit Raleigh in ACC play, while Clemson, Cal, Georgia Tech, and UNC host the remaining four games. Both Byes are late in the season: Weeks 9 and 12.
OC Robert Anae couldn’t fix his old protégé at QB last year, so this time he’ll try his luck with a dominant figure from the G5 ranks in Coastal Carolina grad transfer Grayson McCall. The running back issue has been addressed with former Blue Devil Jordan Waters, who had a career-high 123 yards on the ground when the Pack last visited Durham. Justin Joly, the leading receiver for UConn in 2023, joins as a complement to Concepcion; so does Wesley Grimes, who makes a belated homecoming after two years with Wake Forest. The one change on the line is at center, with Notre Dame grad Zeke Correll taking his extra year here.
Wilson moves onwards and upwards to the Pittsburgh Steelers, but many key pieces including Brown, Vann, Hibbler, and White are still in place. The safety room expands with two vets: Donovan Kaufman, who started at Auburn, and former Syracuse standout Ja’Had Carter, who was passed over at Ohio State. The LBs will mostly be sorted internally, with Corey Coley brought in from Maryland as insurance.
Syracuse Game Date: Saturday, October 12
Location: Carter-Finley Stadium, Raleigh, North Carolina
Odds of Orange Victory: 25%
Very Early Outlook vs. Syracuse
We’d love for history to repeat itself with a defining victory in the year of #YesWeFran. The hope is that the Pack will be fatigued without a break this deep into the season, but on paper, they’ve addressed basically every roster issue and may even have more depth than before. I’m personally not as sold on McCall as others, but coming off a nine-win season with substandard QB play, does he really need to be that much of an upgrade?
I guess the good news for this is with the second SU bye coming up afterwards, Brown can push his guys to their limits if the game is within reach. The bad is that it’s the third straight game in the Pack’s Den, and the other two are against significantly weaker opponents, so they’ll be just as ferocious. Also, if there’s going to be a game where the O-Line gives everyone heart attacks via Kyle McCord taking some hits, this is it. That stacked State pass rush makes for some brutal matchups. More signs than not point to dreams of a perfect season ending here – but as with every other game, you gotta play ‘em.