- This page contains affiliate links. We may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
North Carolina (2-5) at Syracuse (3-5)
- When: Oct 31 2025, 7:30 PM
- Where: JMA Wireless Dome, Syracuse, NY
- Where to watch: ESPN
- Last Meeting: North Carolina 40-7, October 7th, 2023
North Carolina vs Syracuse Preview & Prediction
Spread: Syracuse -2.5
Moneyline: Syracuse (-130)
Total: 45.5
Syracuse Orange: Spooky Season, Scary Offense
The Syracuse Orange are back home, ready to defend the Dome and possibly their dignity. After losing four straight, the Orange are starting to look like a team haunted by its own playbook. Their last win came so long ago that fans are beginning to wonder if it was a fever dream following that victory over Clemson.
Coach Fran Brown has been trying to exorcise whatever demons are plaguing his team, but lately, it’s been less “Orange is the New Black” and more “Orange is the New Interception.” Quarterback Rickie Collins has thrown eight picks so far, which means he’s basically Santa Claus for defensive backs. Still, he’s managed nearly a thousand passing yards, and every now and then he does something so electric that you think, “Wait… maybe he’s figuring it out!” Then he throws another one into triple coverage, and you remember this is Syracuse football.
The good news? It’s Halloween weekend, and the Orange are 15-5 all-time on the spooky holiday. The bad news? The scariest thing about them this season has been their red-zone play-calling. Still, Collins’ running ability adds a flicker of life to this offense, and if Syracuse can hold onto the football for more than two consecutive drives, they might just pull this off.
North Carolina Tar Heels: The Kings of Close Losses
On the other side, North Carolina is coming off two straight heartbreakers, including a 17-16 overtime loss to Virginia. You can’t say the Tar Heels don’t fight, they just don’t finish. Their coach, Bill Belichick (not that Belichick, though wouldn’t that be fun), insists that “every week is its own entity,” which might sound profound if it weren’t coming after a month of “entities” that all look like losses.
Quarterback Gio Lopez has been serviceable, which is another way of saying “please don’t turn it over this time.” He’s tossed five interceptions and just four touchdowns, and at this point, Tar Heel fans are measuring success by whether the offense punts on their own terms or their opponent’s.
Defensively, they’ve shown flashes of competence, but against a running quarterback like Collins, it could get messy fast. Then again, Syracuse has been so kind with giveaways that North Carolina’s defense might leave with more catches than their wideouts.
Prediction: Tricks, Treats, and Turnovers
This one has all the makings of a Halloween thriller, if by thriller, you mean a low-scoring game filled with fumbles, missed field goals, and coaches muttering to themselves on the sideline. Expect momentum swings, questionable play calls, and at least one fan yelling, “RUN THE BALL!” loud enough to be heard on the broadcast.
Syracuse’s home advantage and the mystical Halloween magic of the Dome should be enough to break their curse. The Tar Heels will hang around, as they always do, but when the final whistle blows, expect Syracuse to barely scrape by like a zombie clawing out of the ACC basement.
Final Score: Syracuse 23, North Carolina 20
Lean: Syracuse -2.5
Total: Under 45.5
- NCAA Football Odds source: Bovada Sportsbook
- Get real-time live scores & latest betting odds here!
