After an upset win over #23 Georgia Tech Saturday, Syracuse football still finds itself on the outside of the AP Top 25. Despite this, the Orange now are a top-30 team in a variety of national polls and rankings. Here’s where SU (and their opponents) stand in some of the biggest ones.
In the one that matters most, Syracuse still finds itself over 40 points out of a top 25 spot. But after not receiving any votes after week one, the Orange improved to 63 votes in the most recent rankings, good for 29th in the nation. #25 Northern Illinois, Illinois, Boise St. and Texas A&M are the four teams directly ahead of SU.
Looking at the road ahead for SU, there’s two more ranked tests on the schedule. The hardest will be the last game of the regular season, when Syracuse hosts #10 Miami. The Hurricanes are off to a dominant 2-0 start behind quarterback Cam Ward. And in a twist no one expected, #23 Boston College is a ranked game for now. Syracuse travels to BC on November 9.
Both UNLV and California received votes in the poll, with the Rebels having the 38th most votes and the Golden Bears in 41st.
Syracuse made strides in the second-biggest poll, jumping from one vote after week one to 33 this week. This puts Syracuse in a tie for 28th most points with Illinois.
Syracuse has only one ranked opponent in the Coaches Poll, with Miami jumping from #15 to #12.
Boston College sits right on the bubble, with the 27th most votes. UNLV (34th most votes) and California (42nd) also received a vote. And Pittsburgh, who SU travels to on Oct. 24, was in 44th.
And in a fun national ranking (not poll), Syracuse made a huge jump in The Athletic’s weekly rankings, going from 60th all the way up to 28. Surrounding the Orange are #26 Vanderbilt, #27 Illinois, #29 Arizona State and #30 Cal, who are all also 2-0.
