Syracuse Football: Staff picks do include an Orange upset of UNC

Josh Peelman

Syracuse football comes in optimistic about this season. Sure, they had a down year last year after having an amazing season in 2018, but they feel they have the talent to stay close with the ACC’s best.
Whether that’s true or not remains to be seen, especially in a season limited to mostly just ACC teams on SU’s schedule due to the coronavirus. North Carolina, aka UNC, is Syracuse’s season-opening opponent. The Orange must travel to Chapel Hill to take on the No. 18 team in the country in a stadium with no fans. Talk about a less than an ideal situation to start the season!

Despite the Tar Heels’ wealth of experience and talent, I think the Orange will play better than experts think they will. Currently, they are projecting the Orange to lose by 22 points. Call me optimistic, but I smell a season-opening upset.

The Orange are ripe for a big win after last year’s disappointing performance, and the offensive line woes should hopefully be resolved. Therefore, I’m expecting an impressive showing from starting quarterback Tommy DeVito who is looking to improve his NFL prospects.

He is too talented to be sacked as much as he was last year, and if he’s given more time in the pocket than a second or two, then I think he can have a record-breaking year. He’s got plenty of receivers and tight ends who can make plays after the catch, he just needs to be able to get the ball to them. That’s something he can accurately do. I see an Orange win on the road by the slimmest of margins at 42-38.