Syracuse football ends on longest losing streak in five years

Syracuse football closed a season that unraveled after a week 4 injury to quarterback Steve Angeli by falling to a one-win Boston College team at home. BC brought in a 10-game losing streak itself, and for the first half of the game, play was even between the two struggling squads. 

The Eagles got on the board first with a field goal late in the first, but Syracuse answered early in the second when Tripp Woody drilled a 49-yard field goal. The Orange then put together a 14-play, 65-yard drive that resulted in a 26-yard field goal, making it the first Syracuse lead since Halloween’s game against the Tar Heels.

Boston College tied the game 6-6 by halftime and used that momentum to topple Syracuse in the second half. The Eagles exposed how thin Syracuse had become, striking first out of the half with a touchdown in just three plays. A 9-yard rush by Grayson James, a 54-yard catch by Lewis Bond and a 16-yard TD run by Turbo Richard would be the beginning of the scoring for Boston College.

The Eagles went on a 28-0 run against the Orange and did not punt for the entire half, making it 34-6 before Syracuse’s Dan Villari punched in a goal-line score on senior day for his squad’s lone touchdown.

The struggles that unfolded against Boston College reflected the challenges Syracuse faced all season. Injuries plagued the team all season after Angeli went down, losing playmakers like Justus Ross-Simmons, Yasin Willis and key pieces on the offensive line.

“I felt like we had to shuffle all year long. You look at today, our top receiver and our top running back not playing, we had to mix up the offensive line all year, Devin Grant still limping out there today,” head coach Fran Brown said.

Syracuse did not win a game without Angeli at the helm and never scored more than 20 points during the eight-game slide. Despite the setbacks, the Orange are already looking toward next season and laying the groundwork for a turnaround.

“We want to build around that offensive line and Steve. If the offensive line is right and we can run the ball consistently, we will never be in this storm that we’re in right now,” Brown said.

In addition to moving forward, there was a lot to reflect on in a season full of struggles.

“There’s ups and downs. All the ups were last year and all the downs this year. But I probably learned a lot more this year just from a staff perspective, from the players, being able to keep them motivated, continuously keep them going,” Brown said.

That message resonates with the players, who have faith in the program’s direction. 

“Everything that Coach Fran said that we are and what we’re going to be about, that’s where we’ve been,” Gary Bryant III said. “He’s somebody that we all have trust in. When you’ve got somebody that cares about you like that, you want to play for them, and I ultimately know he’s going to make the right decisions to make this program elevated.”

For the younger players, the experience of a challenging season has fueled motivation. 

“You remember the feeling from this season and don’t ever want to go through that again,” freshman Demetres Samuel Jr. said. “It feels a bad taste in your mouth and it’s time to work in the offseason to make sure it doesn’t happen again.”

Part of that growth is to step into leadership. Antoine Deslauriers, another star defensive freshman like Samuel, said lessons in leadership are already taking root

“We followed our leaders, our coaches, and teammates. I think next year is going to be our year to take on that role and lead this defense to go win,” Deslauriers said.

Coach Brown is already counting down the days until Orange football can get up and running.

“Jan. 10 is what my eyes are on. All our commits will report to campus. I want to take full advantage of everything that we have. I’m very motivated. I’m excited about it,” Brown said.

Syracuse looks to make this disappointing season a one-off in the second year under Coach Fran Brown, with a healthy roster and a renewed focus on building a program capable of competing at the top level.