When Syracuse football and Pittsburgh announced they were playing their game this season in Yankees Stadium, many fans were left confused and/or unhappy. And while I understand the narrative, I don’t think it’s that bad to have a “specialized game” that provides a unique opportunity for broadcast/attention. In fact. I look at it as a privilege that they think Syracuse verse Pittsburgh should be a special event.
And after the news hit the fans, I looked at the rest of the schedule and I have to say…I’m excited about this upcoming season. Syracuse football will play 5 games in the month of September with 4 being home games, then spend the whole month of October on the road and finish with the game at Yankees Stadium, one game at Georgia Tech and two more home games.
Syracuse football will start at home against Colgate and Western Michigan, travel to Purdue then come back home to play Army and Clemson all in the first month of the season. I’m a huge fan of playing those Colgate and Western Michigan games first because playing at Purdue will not be easy and this gives Syracuse football an opportunity to go in there 2-0 possibly and having had 2 games to work on their timing.
There are numerous things that I like about the Syracuse football 2023 schedule.
Army football finished 6-6 last season and we know who Clemson (SU’s homecoming game) is so can Syracuse survive September with a winning record? I say yes but I’m not taking any opponent lightly including Colgate.
October only has three games but as mentioned above, all three games are on the road. They’ll play at North Carolina and at Florida State on back-to-back Saturdays to start the month before playing a Thursday game 12 days later at Virginia Tech.
All three venues and teams will provide a challenge for the Orange but as Ric Flair famously touted, “To be the man you’ve got to beat the man.” I’m not someone who favors lighter schedules because I think the more enjoyable schedule is tougher opponents and if this program wants to win and recruit top players, it only helps to have recognizable teams and hard-fought games.
And then the Orange football program will close out the regular season with 4 November games (2 home games, 1 neutral site and 1 away game at Georgia Tech). The home games are a Friday night game against Boston College to start the month and Wake Forest to finish it.
And my hope is that Pittsburgh and Syracuse both have good enough seasons that maybe the Yankees Stadium game on November 11 gets a chance to be on ESPN or ABC possibly, especially with the Yankees’ venue being unique.
I get that people want more home games and I do too because it’s good for the team, the fans and the venue/community to generate income but there can be benefits, especially to recruits in NJ/NYC, to play in front of family as well as getting a better TV slot.
In conclusion, looking at this schedule, nothing screams at me to be fearful so I’ll choose my normal optimism. Playing at Purdue and FSU especially won’t be easy but I don’t think either is impossible. Also, Syracuse football has shown they can play Clemson well at home under Head Coach Dino Babers so that favors the Orange a bit too.
I can definitely look at this schedule and see a path to another bowl game if key players stay healthy. This team has the talent to play with anyone on their schedule with a couple of possible NFL players on the roster so don’t count out the Orange.
And don’t let the Yankees Stadium game frustrate you too much (though you have every right to voice your opinions should you disagree) because there are benefits to it for sure and it’s a done deal so let’s just try to enjoy it and root root root for the Orange team.