Previewing NC State’s Opponent: Syracuse

NC State and Syracuse will kickoff tonight at 8pm on ACC Network. Before they take the field, here’s a preview of the Orange.

Syracuse is 4-1, with two of their wins coming against teams that were ranked in the Top-25 at the time. The Orange defeated Georgia Tech 31-28 when they were ranked 23rd, and defeated UNLV 44-41 in OT last week when they were ranked 25th.

The Orange’s one loss was against Stanford, losing 26-24 to the Cardinals.

Syracuse currently ranks 35th in the AP Poll.

The Orange are led by Senior Quarterback Kyle McCord, who was the starter for Ohio State last season, earning 3rd Team All-Big Ten honors. In 2024, McCord has thrown for 1,814 yards (2nd in the ACC) and 17 touchdowns (2nd in the ACC). He is completing 64.2% of his passes, and his passing efficiency rating is 146.0 (9th in the ACC). McCord’s passing efficiency rating would be much higher if he hadn’t thrown 6 interceptions, which is tied for the most in the conference.

Junior Running Back LeQuint Allen is Syracuse’s feature back, rushing for 358 yards (10th in the ACC) and 3 touchdowns, averaging 4.9 yards per carry. He’s also extremely active in the passing game, with 29 receptions for 226 yards and 3 touchdowns.

Syracuse has 3 players ranked in the Top-11 in the ACC in receiving yards per game. Redshirt Junior Trebor Pena averages 76.6 yards per game, which ranks 7th in the ACC. His 5 touchdown receptions rank 2nd in the conference. Redshirt Junior Tight End Oronde Gadsden II averages 71.8 yards per game, which ranks 9th. He also has 3 touchdown receptions. Senior Jackson Meeks ranks 11th in the ACC with 68.6 yards receiving per game. He also has 3 touchdown receptions. Meeks spent his first three seasons at Georgia before transferring to Syracuse this offseason.

The Wolfpack defense has their hands full this evening. Syracuse is scoring 35.8 points per game (6th in the ACC), while accumulating an average of 478.6 yards of offense (3rd in the ACC). While they rank 2nd-t0-last in rushing yards per game (109.6), they rank 2nd in passing yards per game (369.0).

Top-6 Highest Graded Offensive Players According to PFF

QB Kyle McCord – 85.1

RB LeQuint Allen – 79.4

WR Jackson Meeks – 78.9

TE Maximillian Mang – 75.0

TE Oronde Gadsden II – 74.1

WR Trebor Pena – 73.8

Redshirt Junior Linebacker Derek McDonald leads Syracuse with 32 tackles.

Senior Defensive End Fadil Diggs leads the team with 8 tackles for loss, which ranks 3rd in the ACC. Digg’s 4 sacks rank 5th in the ACC.

Senior Cornerback Clarence Lewis ranks is tied for 2nd in the ACC in pass breakups per game (total of 6).

As a Defensive Unit, Syracuse is giving up 26.2 points per game (13th in the ACC), 345.8 yards of total offense (8th), 136.6 rushing yards (11th) and 209.2 passing yards (5th in the ACC).

Stopping the pass is the strength of the Orange’s defense, so it’s not surprising to see that 4 of Syracuse’s Top-5 highest graded defensive players according to PFF are defensive backs.

Top-5 Highest Graded Offensive Players According to PFF

DE Fadil Diggs – 76.7

S Duce Chestnut – 73.2

CB Jayden Bellamy – 73.1

CB Devin Grant – 72.3

CB Clarence Lewis – 71.5