FRANCESCO (3-0): North Carolina 31, Syracuse 23
Game two of the gauntlet, and loss number two for Syracuse. The Tar Heels are just too good. It starts and ends with Drake Maye. Despite an uneven start to the year for the projected top 5 pick, he’s still the best quarterback Syracuse will face this year. Now he’s got a new weapon in Tez Walker to work with as well. The Orange manage to keep it close, they cover but ultimately Maye makes too many plays. Look for the offense to have a bounce back performance, especially the passing game. A couple of the shots that didn’t connect against Clemson will against UNC. LeQuint Allen will have a high volume day, both through the air and on the ground.
ADAM (4-0): North Carolina 34, Syracuse 14
Drake Maye is a potential top 5 pick in the NFL draft for a reason. He will pick apart the Syracuse defense and fit balls into the tightest windows. Especially with Tez Walker eligible, I don’t see a way the Orange can stop the Tarheels.
On the other side of the ball, UNC has had one of the best pass defenses in the nation this season. LeQuint Allen has to have a career day or else the SU offense is doomed.
LIAM (3-1): North Carolina 38, Syracuse 24
I played with fire when I picked the Orange to upset Clemson last weekend and I got burned. The same mistake will not be made this weekend. The Tigers and Florida State have gotten all the love from the national media when it comes to who is in the ACC’s elite, but we should not be sleeping on the Tar Heels. UNC’s defense is nothing special, but the offense is its M.O.. Drake Maye hasn’t been otherworldly this season, but he is the ACC Preseason Player of The Year for a reason. SU hasn’t faced a good team away from home yet this season, so expect yet another slow start en route to a second consecutive loss.
ETHAN (3-1): North Carolina 35, Syracuse 17
Until Syracuse it proves it can be competitive with the big boys, especially after a demoralizing loss, I will not believe it until I see it. Clemson was way too much firepower for Syracuse to handle, and we saw what happened in the secondary last week when inexperienced players went up against big-time talent. Drake Maye is a whole new level of quarterback that the Orange have not seen in quite some time, maybe since Trevor Lawrence was at Clemson. SU will have to play a perfect game (no turnovers and limiting penalties) to win, and that has never really been the case under Dino Babers. The Heels roll in this one.
TYLER (2-1): North Carolina 34, Syracuse 23
Syracuse has a chance to prove it isn’t the same team as last season. It’s a chance to say, “no, we’re not the same team that let a loss to Clemson snowball into a five-game losing streak.”
Maybe SU will accomplish that goal and keep a close game that gives Orange fans a bit of optimism. But when it comes to actually beating the Tar Heels, I’m not so sure.
UNC will have the best offensive and defensive player on the field. On offense, it’s quarterback Drake May. He’s got all the talent in the world and will be a top-10 draft pick in the spring. On defense, it’s linebacker Cedric Gray. He can tackle, cover, and everything in between.
Syracuse will keep it somewhat close, but North Carolina has too much talent. The Tar Heels will pull away at the end.
