Syracuse is in the midst of a three-game losing streak, dropping its record to 3-5. The Orange last lost to Florida State, 35-17, and still haven’t defeated a Power 5 team this season. Boston College, who visits the Carrier Dome Saturday, was blown out by Clemson in a 59-7 loss last week.

Here’s what our beat writers predict in Saturday’s Syracuse-Boston College matchup.

Eric Black (6-2)
Last chance
Syracuse 27, Boston College 23

There really aren’t many good reasons to pick the Orange in this one. They still haven’t defeated a Power 5 team, they’ve turned in three clunkers in a row and they’re just a bad football team right now. Boston College has one of the best running backs in the country, strong performances against Wake Forest and NC State under its belt and one of the better offenses in the ACC. Quite frankly, I’m shocked Syracuse is favored by three points. But I’m going with SU. Its biggest weakness so far this season has been pass protection, but BC is one of the worst teams in the country in terms of sacks. And while AJ Dillon will pose a problem for the Orange defense, they’ve been better at stopping the run than the pass this year. It’s not much to go on, but this is the best chance of a win Syracuse has the rest of the season and I think it’ll be its fourth and final victory.

Andrew Graham (6-2)
November rains
Boston College 21, Syracuse 10

I have no reason to pick Syracuse to win this game, therefore I am not picking Syracuse to win this game. SU head coach Dino Babers has talked a lot about the youth and growth on this team, and how the experience this year will make these players better down the road. That may well be true, but it doesn’t fix the fact that Syracuse’s offensive does not work this season. Full stop. The Orange average 16.5 points per game less this season compared to last, and I don’t expect anything to have changed since last week. The matchup is a little friendlier, but that won’t be enough. The slide continues. 

Josh Schafer (7-1)
Run over 
Boston College 27 Syracuse 17 

The first Syracuse football game I covered was SU-BC in November 2017. I remember one thing about that game and it’s Dillon running wild on the Orange for 193 yards and three touchdowns. It stands out too because Dillon just ran all over Syracuse. While the Orange haven’t established themselves as completely depleted yet, this game might prove it. Syracuse’s offense hasn’t showed an ability to create yet and there’s no reason to believe it starts this Saturday. A few weeks ago, North Carolina State knew Dillon would be running all day and he still ran for 223 yards. The Wolfpack have a better ranked defense than the Orange. Expect a similar result for Syracuse on Saturday. 

Published on November 1, 2019 at 7:03 pm