After spending the entire month of October on the road, Syracuse football returns to the Hill for an Atlantic Coast Conference showdown with Virginia Tech this Saturday afternoon.
Last Thursday night, the Orange saw its three-game winning streak snapped when undefeated and top-20 Pittsburgh handled the 'Cuse, 41-13, buoyed by the strength of the Panthers' defense, which scored 31 points off of five interceptions by Syracuse football senior quarterback Kyle McCord.
I expect McCord, a four-star transfer from Ohio State and former five-star prep recruit, to fare better versus the Hokies. The Orange, with five contests remaining in its 2024 regular season, needs just one more victory to qualify for a post-season bowl game for the third consecutive year.
back at Dome 🍊🎯
— Syracuse Football (@CuseFootball) October 28, 2024
🗓️ Saturday 11/2
🆚 @HokiesFB
⌚️ 12:00pm
🏟️ JMA Wireless Dome
📍Syracuse, NY
📺 @TheCW
🎟️ https://t.co/9adOBMHqqz pic.twitter.com/S4vKLfuMGl
Undeniably, the team's performance versus Pittsburgh on a prime-time ESPN broadcast was poor, but the 'Cuse has an opportunity to get back on track when it faces a red-hot Virginia Tech squad.
Syracuse football versus Virginia Tech odds, spread and total
When I wrote this article, FanDuel had the Orange as a 3.5-point betting underdog at home against the Hokies, with the over/under set at 53.5 points.
Syracuse football versus Virginia Tech how to watch
Date: Saturday, Nov. 2
Game Time: 12:00 pm EST
Venue: JMA Wireless Dome in Syracuse, N.Y.
TV/Streaming: The CW Network and fuboTV
Virginia Tech's record: 5-3, 3-1 in the ACC
Syracuse's record: 5-2, 2-2 in the ACC
Syracuse’s full 2024 schedule: Click here
Syracuse football versus Virginia Tech prediction and pick
Here's the week-10 depth chart for the Orange, courtesy of 247Sports analyst Mike McAllister. In their all-time series together, the 'Cuse is 11-9 against the Hokies. During their most recent meeting, in late October of 2023, Virginia Tech crushed Syracuse football at home, 38-10.
Monday injury updates from Brown:
— emily leiker (@emleiker) October 28, 2024
Gadsden is good. Will play Saturday.
Willis is essentially day-to-day. They’re monitoring his sprained ankle.
The Hokies are currently on a roll, having won three in a row. To date in the 2024 term, Virginia Tech has victories over Marshall, Old Dominion, Stanford, Boston College and Georgia Tech. The Hokies' trio of setbacks are to Vanderbilt, Rutgers and Miami by a combined 14 points.
Virginia Tech senior running back Bhayshul Tuten is having an awesome campaign so far, carrying the ball 142 times for 950 yards and 12 touchdowns on the ground. According to media reports, when the Hokies knocked off Georgia Tech at home over the weekend, Tuten did suffer an ankle injury, so that's something to monitor.
Fran Brown said he has challenged both Justus Ross-Simmons and Emanuel Ross to do more at WR. Said E. Ross is showing toughness by playing through nagging injuries but also needs to display more as he matures.
— chris carlson (@ccarlsononSU) October 28, 2024
On offense, both the Orange and Virginia Tech average around 31 points per contest. However, the Hokies are No. 3 within the ACC in scoring defense, allowing 20.4 points per game, which is nearly a touchdown less than the 'Cuse.
Virginia Tech is trending in a strong direction, and Syracuse football is coming off an ugly loss. I think this ACC collision will be tightly fought, and it could go either way. I'll project the Orange to bounce back and prevail over the Hokies, 28-24.