Syracuse Football: Bowl projections for Orange prior to game at No. 4 FSU

Syracuse football is stuck in a two-game losing streak and plays at No. 4 Florida State this Saturday afternoon, with the likelihood that the Orange is looking at its third consecutive setback in a few days.

Yet the ‘Cuse continues to see its name pop up in a variety of bowl projections from national pundits. The Orange (4-2, 0-2 in the ACC) has not played well in suffering back-to-back losses to Clemson at home and then top-15 North Carolina on the road.

The Seminoles (5-0, 3-0 in the ACC) will be the highest-ranked foe to date in the 2023 season that the ‘Cuse has battled, and many fans understandably think that after this Saturday, Syracuse football will reside at 4-3 overall.

Even still, this week, ESPN’s football power index (“FPI”) gives the Orange a convincing 98.0 percent chance to get to at least six triumphs in 2023 and qualify for a bowl game for the second term in a row.

Following its encounter at FSU, the ‘Cuse will have a much-needed bye week, and the back end of the Orange’s 2023 schedule does contain numerous winnable match-ups. Syracuse football absolutely has to improve its play from the last two games, but I continue to believe that SU is in a good position to reach a post-season bowl in 2023.

Let’s review bowl projections for Syracuse football ahead of week seven.

Jerry Palm of CBS Sports has the ‘Cuse headed to the Holiday Bowl to battle Pac-12 Conference member Washington State on December 27 in San Diego. The Cougars, at present, are 4-1 and ranked No. 19 in the latest Associated Press top-25 poll.

Brett McMurphy of Action Network has the ‘Cuse squaring off against Pac-12 member Utah at the Sun Bowl on December 29 in El Paso, Texas. The Utes are 4-1 and No. 16 in the most recent AP poll.

Brad Crawford of 247Sports also has Syracuse football in the Holiday Bowl, with the Orange going up against UCLA out of the Pac-12. The Bruins are 4-1 and in the latest AP poll, UCLA resides at No. 18 overall.

Steven Lassan of Athlon Sports is predicting that Syracuse football will suit up versus American Athletic Conference team Navy on December 27 at the Military Bowl in Annapolis, Md. So far in the current campaign, the Midshipmen are 2-3 overall.

I’m not expecting our beloved boys in Orange to upset top-five FSU on the road this Saturday, but Syracuse football will have many more chances later on in the season to attain a half-dozen conquests and get to a bowl game.