College Football Friday Night: Stanford vs. Syracuse Picks & Predictions

Stanford Cardinal (1-1 SU, 1-1 ATS) vs. Syracuse Orange (2-0 SU, 1-1 ATS)

NCAA Football Week 3

Date/Time: Friday, September 20, 2024 at 7:30PM EDT

Where: JMA Wireless Dome, Syracuse, New York

TV: ESPN

The Stanford Cardinal come to the JMA Wireless Dome to face the Syracuse Orange in a Friday night special ACC showdown in New York. Stanford is now a member of the ACC with this being their first ever conference game. Syracuse has already notched a conference win by beating Georgia Tech in their last game. Both of these teams last played on September 7, giving them a little chance to regroup ahead of this game. Will a troubled Stanford team maybe benefit from the ease of a new conference or will they be easy pickings for a Syracuse team that has looked pretty good through their first two games? Let’s break it down!

Items to Consider

At this time in the season, you start to wonder how teams like Stanford are going to do and the challenges they face as deposed teams from an exiled conference. Granted, Syracuse is no more familiar with playing Stanford than the opposite. But do teams like Stanford get an extra knock now playing in conferences that used to be totally foreign to them? And that would especially seem to be true when a team like Stanford is participating in its first ever ACC game, having to take a monstrous road-trip to play in an unfamiliar setting. You just figure that has to be an extra disadvantage that teams already embedded in their conferences don’t face. Not to mention the challenges to bettors, who now lose all the feel they developed gauging Stanford in their normal Pac-12 context. It almost gives the vibe of Stanford playing all non-conference games this season and maybe when they’re at home, it’s not that big of a deal. But let’s just say this isn’t time of the year where they’d normally be packing up to go to Syracuse, New York.

While Syracuse is no powerhouse, alternating between 5-7 wins the last 3 seasons, they’re pretty solid. Stanford is coming off two straight 3-9 seasons, as they land in the ACC this season with quite a thud. After replacing longtime head coach David Shaw last season, Troy Taylor looks for better in his second season at the helm. Early returns aren’t so horrible perhaps, with a wipeout win over Cal Poly, preceded by a 34-27 loss to TCU. And to their benefit, they had last week off to prepare for this road-trip and their first ACC Conference game.

The State of the Orange

Syracuse also had last week off, as they brace for this battle at home. A 38-22 win over Ohio on August 31 was routine enough, but as small underdogs the following week against Georgia Tech, they took control of the game and built a big lead, braving the Yellow Jackets’ late charge and escaping with a big 31-28 win to get themselves off to a fast start in conference play. They’ve started fast under first-year head coach Fran Brown with two wins and two covers. This offense looks to have some increased upside with former Oho State starter Kyle McCord behind center and he already has 8 TDs through two games with a robust 735 yards. He’s got some talented receivers with Oronde Gadsden and Trebor Pena, with LeQuint Allen showing some of the form that led to him being a 1000-yard rusher last season. A Stanford defense facing a lot of questions will have their hands full.

What to Expect on Friday

I’d be looking for the Syracuse defense to try to shut down Stanford quarterback Ashton Daniels, try to contain him in play-action and make him beat them with his arm. He can be dangerous when he gets out into space and is allowed to be creative. On offense, the Orange will need to be cagey with how they use Allen against what is a pretty decent Stanford run-stop. I think this is where McCord comes into play, along with Gadsden and Pena, to test a Stanford secondary that lags far behind its front. I don’t see their corners or safeties really being good enough to cover Syracuse’s best targets, which in turn, could open up things a little more for Allen to show his rushing prowess. Later in the game, as Stanford tries to hang in there, I’d look for big doses of Allen, as the Orange eat off clock and keep Daniels and the Stanford offense off the field.

Again, Stanford counters with Daniels, who does have a high ceiling on a given day. He’s not without weapons, with WR Elic Ayomanor being a real threat and already showing his fangs this season. Ismael Cisse has shown himself to be dangerous. It’s unfortunate that the former RB-factory hasn’t really hit paydirt in that category in a while, but Daniels can make up for it with his legs and having a guy in Ayomanor who might be the best receiver in the conference. Still, it’s a big part of the reason we’ve seen this Stanford offense regressing in recent seasons.

Take the Home Favorite

I like Syracuse in this spot. It’s not even so much Stanford being in unfamiliar territory that does it for me, though their recent failings can’t help but register. Syracuse is no world-beater and Stanford is accustomed to facing a good 7-8 teams a season that are just as good if not better than the Orange. I just think the iffy nature of their secondary could make them easy pickings for McCord, who can then hand it off to Allen for the cherry on top. In the end, I have a hard time seeing Stanford seriously keeping pace, as Syracuse notches the win and cover at home.

Loot’s Prediction to Cover the Point Spread:

I’m betting on the Syracuse Orange minus 10 points.