Syracuse (4-6, 1-5 Atlantic Coast) plays its final road contest of the season, kicking off against Louisville (6-4, 4-3) at 4 p.m. on Saturday at Cardinal Stadium. 

The Orange come into the weekend fresh off their first conference win of the season, a 49-6 blasting of Duke on the road while the Cardinals roundly polished off North Carolina State in Raleigh. Here’s what our beat writers think of the matchup.

Eric Black (6-4)
Not in the Cards
Louisville 31, Syracuse 27

It’s tempting to pick the Orange in this one after they dismantled a Duke team that was favored by a similar spread just a week ago. But the Cardinals are much better than the Blue Devils, who entered their contest with SU riding a three-game losing streak. Louisville’s offense will be a stiff test for interim defensive coordinator Steve Stanard, who passed his first with flying colors, as the Cardinals boast one of the best offenses in the ACC. Sure, they’re vulnerable defensively, but Syracuse is without the benefit of the extra week of preparation it had last game and has yet to put together two-straight dominant performances this season. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Orange pull off another upset, but I certainly don’t expect one. 

Andrew Graham (7-3)
For the birds
Louisville 38, Syracuse 27

I will not let SU’s 49-6 drubbing of comatose Duke last week trick me into picking them against what is a much better Louisville team than expected. After burning out under Bobby Petrino last season, the Cardinals brought in Scott Satterfield from Appalachian State and the first-year coach already has Louisville bowl-eligible and second in the ACC Atlantic, a division they were picked to finish last in before the season. Don’t get me wrong, Syracuse is finally surging, seems to have new life defensively after firing coordinator Brian Ward and has gotten stronger play on the offensive line with Carlos Vettorello’s move to center. But it’ll be too little, way too late against the fast, talented and bowl-bound Cardinals. 

Josh Schafer (8-2)
Don’t call it comeback
Syracuse 34, Louisville 27

Well, last week I said Syracuse had shown the things it needed to turn things around. Against Duke, we saw all those things against a depleted Blue Devils’ unit. Louisville will be better, but it might not matter. This game will be won on the ground. Louisville is 5-1 when rushing for over 200 yards this season, so whoever can win that battle will hold the keys to the game. After last week’s offensive line performance, expect the Orange to clear some big holes once more. 

Published on November 22, 2019 at 8:49 pm