Syracuse Orange vs Tennessee Volunteers Prediction, Picks and Game Preview - 08/30/2025

Game Time: 12:00 pm ET, Saturday, August 30, 2025

Venue:  Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta, GA

Where to Watch:  ABC

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  Syracuse +13.5, Tennessee -13.5; Over/Under:  50.5 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  Syracuse +13.5, Tennessee -13.5; Over/Under:  50.5 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  Syracuse +14, Tennessee -14; Over/Under:  50.5 points

Syracuse Orange:  0-0 (0-0) (ACC)

Tennessee Volunteers:  0-0 (0-0) (SEC)

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Syracuse Orange:  N/A

Tennessee Volunteers:  N/A

Syracuse finished last season with a 10-3 record overall and they had a 5-3 record in their conference games too.  They were 6-1 in their home games, 3-2 in their road games, and they were also 1-0 in their neutral site games last season, and they will be at a neutral site for this season opener. Last season, their offense was averaging 34.1 points scored per game while their defense was allowing an average of 29.2 points per game. Their offense also averaged 467.6 yards per game while their defense was allowing an average of 377.5 yards per game. Kyle McCord led the team in passing yards with 4,779, LeQuint Allen led the team in rushing yards with 1,021, and Jackson Meeks led the team in receiving yards with 1,021.

 

 

 

Tennessee finished last season with a 10-3 record overall and they had a 6-2 record in their conference games too.  They were 7-0 in their home games, 2-3 in their road games, and they were also 1-0 in their neutral site games last season, and they will be at a neutral site for this season opener. Last season, their offense was averaging 35.7 points scored per game while their defense was allowing an average of 16.1 points per game. Their offense also averaged 447 yards per game while their defense was allowing an average of 293.2 yards per game. Nico Iamaleava led the team in passing yards with 2,616, Dylan Sampson led the team in rushing yards with 1,491, and Dont'e Thornton led the team in receiving yards with 661.

The current betting odds have Tennessee listed as a 13.5 point favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. Tennessee had a great season last year, finishing near the top of the SEC and earning a spot in the college football playoffs. They ended up running into the buzz saw who won the National Championship, but they had a really encouraging season and will have their sights set on another playoff appearance this year. They did lose their starting QB and had to replace some of their other players on offense too, but they reloaded with plenty of talent and are going to have a good offense once again with Heupel coaching. The defense was also their true star last season and they are returning a ton of talent that was on that defense last season so scoring is going to be the issue for Syracuse in this one. Meanwhile, Syracuse had a great season themselves last year, not making it to the CFP but ending with a 10-win season. They will be looking to build on that surprisingly good year, but the problem for Syracuse is that they did lose a lot of talent. They lost quite a few players on defense and their defense wasn't great last season anyway. They also lost a ton of players on their offense, including their starting QB, so this offense isn't going to look the same right out of the gate. Syracuse will have troubles on offense with all of the new players, and this is not the defense they want to see in their 1st game of the season with a bunch of new players. The best way to place a bet here is on Tennessee to cover the spread in this game. 

Syracuse Tennessee Prediction:  Our NCAAF Pick for Saturday, August 30, 2025 (12:00 pm ET start time) is Tennessee 55 Syracuse 13.

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Syracuse Orange: 26-41 ATS as an underdog of 10.5 to 21 points. 27-37 ATS on the road when the total is between 49.5 and 56. 6-3 OVER against SEC opponents. 

Tennessee Volunteers: 6-3 ATS as a neutral field favorite of 7.5 to 14 points. 5-1 ATS when the total is between 49.5 and 56. 8-2 ATS in non-conference games. 9-5 OVER against ACC opponents.

Syracuse Orange:  None.

Tennessee Volunteers:  None.

“I mean, they’re the experts, right? That’s where they picked us. Just going to work and see what happens. Either they’re going to be right or wrong.” - Fran Brown on his team being picked to finish 12th in the ACC this season. 

"Joey, through the course of training camp, each and every day, continued to grow and take steps, and understand what we’re doing, and comfort level, played well in the scrimmages, had good command. That ultimately led to the decision that we made." - Josh Heupel on naming Joey Aguilar the starting QB this season. 

WR Gill Jr., Darrell 

WR Ross-Simmons, Justus

WR Cook, Johntay

TE Tremble, Jamie

QB Angeli, Steve

RB Willis, Yasin

WR Matthews, Mike

WR Brazzell II, Chris

WR Staley, Braylon

TE Kitselman, Miles

QB Aguilar, Joey

RB Bishop, DeSean

Passing: N/A

Rushing: N/A

Receiving: N/A

Touchdowns: N/A

Passing: N/A

Rushing: N/A

Receiving: N/A

Touchdowns: N/A

Coaches:

Syracuse Orange: Fran Brown (2nd season)

Tennessee Volunteers: Josh Heupel (5th season)