Sports SUmmary: Football’s Battle of the Orange; men’s soccer all tied up; Cuse in the NFL
Sports SUmmary: Football's Battle of the Orange
With the nation’s top team and the defending national champions set to battle the Orange on homecoming weekend, has the Syracuse-Clemson game reached the level of being a rivalry?
ACC foes Pitt and Boston College fit the bill when it comes to SU’s historic rivals as fellow members of the Big East. But over the last two years, Syracuse and Clemson seem to be one of the most anticipated games of the ACC season. SU won a thriller at the Dome in 2017 that had fans storming the Carrier Dome field, then lost a heartbreaker last year in Death Valley.
In both instances, SU exceeded nearly all expectations as an unranked squad going up against a Top 3 juggernaut at the time. This year, Clemson is No. 1 and Syracuse was ranked No. 22 until being crushed by Maryland on Saturday. Regardless, the hype surrounding the showdown has led to the first potential home sellout since 1998 and ABC will air the game in primetime spot.
There will always be animosity between Syracuse, BC and Pitt but maybe more so on the basketball court. They are the neighbor to the right side of your house you haven’t liked for years but can muster a hello in the driveway.
Clemson is that pesky new neighbor on the left that you can’t find a reason to like. And if the past two years are any indication, fans may be treated to a heavyweight battle again Saturday when the ACC rivals square off again.
Double OT dogs
The SU men’s soccer team doesn’t seem to mind a little extra playing time. Both of the Orange’s home games this past week and ended in ties after playing double overtimes.
Syracuse tied Yale 1-1 on Friday night only to tie No. 22 New Hampshire 2-2 two nights later. Simon Triantafillou netted the lone goal on Friday and one on Sunday while Canadian Ryan Raposo got the other one on Sunday. Raposo, is now 8th in total goals (8) in NCAA Division 1, and 10th in points per game at 2.5.
The team will be back in home action as they start their ACC schedule against Louisville this Friday. The ACC currently has seven teams ranked in the Top 25.
The Syracuse women dropped two games this past week, losing 2-0 on the road to Auburn and a 1-0 decision at Kent State. The Orange will be back in action at St. John’s on Thursday and return home next Sunday to face Fordham.
Orange in the NFL
The NFL season kicked off this past weekend with former Syracuse players suiting up across the league.
Arizona Cardinals LB Chandler Jones had four solo tackles and a sack in their 27-27 tie with the Detroit Lions.
New York Giant P Riley Dixon punted four times for 166 yards for an average of 41.5 yards. He was also able to pin the Cowboys inside their own 20 three times in a Giants 35-17 win over the Dallas Cowboys.
Despite their 10-win season last year, Syracuse had only one player drafted in 2019 with DE Chris Slayton selected by the New York Giants in the 7th Round. He was signed to the Giants practice squad on Aug. 31 and was not active for their 35-17 loss to Dallas.
is a graduate student in the Magazine, Newspaper and Online Journalism program with a Sports Communications Emphasis. Upon his graduation, he hopes to work behind-the-scenes at a team or a major network contributing to the world of sports.
