by Team Del Genio
Tuesday, Sep 30, 2025Syracuse was on a three-game winning streak after their 34-21 upset victory at Clemson as an 18-point underdog last week. After an opening week 19-point loss at Tennessee, the Orange beat Connecticut and Colgate before upsetting a now three-loss Tigers team last week (September 20th).
Yet Syracuse had not covered the point spread in five straight games after pulling off an upset victory, and they had not covered the point spread in seven straight games after beating a conference opponent.
The Orange got outgained by 68 net yards against Clemson, yet benefited from a +2 net turnover margin in that game. The Orange did not leave that game undamaged either, since quarterback Steve Angeli suffered a season-ending Achilles injury late in that game. The transfer from Notre Dame completed 18 of 31 passes for 244 yards and two touchdown passes in that game.
Head coach Fran Brown’s plan was to turn to sophomore Rickie Collins as his quarterback. He named the transfer from LSU his starter in the spring, but he got outplayed in the fall by Angeli. He only completed 3 of 8 passes for 34 yards last week. He is still inexperienced after playing in only four games last year.
Syracuse finished 10-3 last year in Brown’s first year with the program, yet only five starters are back from that team. Their assignment this week was to host the Duke Blue Devils.
Duke ended a two-game losing streak with a 45-33 victory against North Carolina State as a field goal favorite last week. The Blue Devils had covered the point spread in eight of their previous eleven games after winning at home in their previous game. They had covered the point spread in six of their last eight games on the road after winning their previous game.
Second-year head coach Manny Diaz brought in a good quarterback in the transfer portal with Darian Mensah. The former Tulane QB completed 19 of 28 passes for 269 yards with three touchdown passes and no turnovers in the win against the Wolfpack. He is supported by a rushing attack that is averaging 145 rushing yards per game and 6.3 yards per carry.
Overall, Duke was averaging 467 yards per game, heading into this game. The Orange were allowing their opponents to average 5.2 yards per carry on the ground, ranking 119th in the nation. The Blue Devils had covered the point spread once in their previous eight games against opponents who average 425 or more yards per game.
Duke was playing on the road for the third time this season, where they had covered the point spread in six of their last seven games on the road against opponents from the ACC. Diaz’s teams had covered the point spread in five of their last six games on the road in the first half of the season.
The Blue Devils dominated this game on both sides of the ball in a 38-3 victory. They raced out to a 24-3 lead heading into halftime. They gained 503 yards of offense in that game. Mensah completed 22 of 28 passes for 268 yards with two touchdown passes and no interceptions. Collins was not bad, but did not engineer a touchdown drive while completing 24 of his 37 passes for 229 yards. The Orange only gained 314 yards in the game.
Good luck — Team Del Genio.
Yet Syracuse had not covered the point spread in five straight games after pulling off an upset victory, and they had not covered the point spread in seven straight games after beating a conference opponent.
The Orange got outgained by 68 net yards against Clemson, yet benefited from a +2 net turnover margin in that game. The Orange did not leave that game undamaged either, since quarterback Steve Angeli suffered a season-ending Achilles injury late in that game. The transfer from Notre Dame completed 18 of 31 passes for 244 yards and two touchdown passes in that game.
Head coach Fran Brown’s plan was to turn to sophomore Rickie Collins as his quarterback. He named the transfer from LSU his starter in the spring, but he got outplayed in the fall by Angeli. He only completed 3 of 8 passes for 34 yards last week. He is still inexperienced after playing in only four games last year.
Syracuse finished 10-3 last year in Brown’s first year with the program, yet only five starters are back from that team. Their assignment this week was to host the Duke Blue Devils.
Duke ended a two-game losing streak with a 45-33 victory against North Carolina State as a field goal favorite last week. The Blue Devils had covered the point spread in eight of their previous eleven games after winning at home in their previous game. They had covered the point spread in six of their last eight games on the road after winning their previous game.
Second-year head coach Manny Diaz brought in a good quarterback in the transfer portal with Darian Mensah. The former Tulane QB completed 19 of 28 passes for 269 yards with three touchdown passes and no turnovers in the win against the Wolfpack. He is supported by a rushing attack that is averaging 145 rushing yards per game and 6.3 yards per carry.
Overall, Duke was averaging 467 yards per game, heading into this game. The Orange were allowing their opponents to average 5.2 yards per carry on the ground, ranking 119th in the nation. The Blue Devils had covered the point spread once in their previous eight games against opponents who average 425 or more yards per game.
Duke was playing on the road for the third time this season, where they had covered the point spread in six of their last seven games on the road against opponents from the ACC. Diaz’s teams had covered the point spread in five of their last six games on the road in the first half of the season.
The Blue Devils dominated this game on both sides of the ball in a 38-3 victory. They raced out to a 24-3 lead heading into halftime. They gained 503 yards of offense in that game. Mensah completed 22 of 28 passes for 268 yards with two touchdown passes and no interceptions. Collins was not bad, but did not engineer a touchdown drive while completing 24 of his 37 passes for 229 yards. The Orange only gained 314 yards in the game.
Good luck — Team Del Genio.
