Old conference foes clash Thursday night when Syracuse takes on USF in the Boca Raton Bowl. The game is a battle of 6-6 teams that willed their way to the postseason with victories in their respective final regular-season opportunities.
Syracuse comes in under the direction of interim coach Nunzio Campanile, who took over after Dino Babers was fired before the conclusion of the season. He was the acting head coach for Orange's win against Wake Forest, which secured back-to-back bowl appearances for Syracuse for the first time since 2012-13. Syracuse has already announced its next head coach with former Georgia assistant Fran Brown taking over, but for the players and remaining staff from the 2023 campaign this is a chance to finish a challenging year on a positive note.
USF is in a different situation from the coaching perspective as coach Alex Golesh has arguably exceeded expectations getting the Bulls into a bowl game for the first time since 2018 in his first year on the job. This is a program that had just four wins combined in the previous three seasons, and the five-win turnaround from 2022 to 2023 ranks as the second-best turnaround in FBS this year and the best year-over-year improvement in USF football history. USF, like Syracuse, had to win its final game of the regular season to reach 6-6 and now hopes to use the 15 bowl practices and Thursday night's game as a chance to build upon the foundation that is Year 1 of the Golesh era.
Syracuse and USF played 10 times previously, with the Orange holding an 8-2 advantage in the all-time series and eight of those matchups coming between 2005-12 when both schools were football members of the Big East. The last meeting between these two, a 45-20 USF win at Syracuse, was in 2016 after the Orange made the transition to the ACC.
Follow along with LIVE updates from the Boca Raton Bowl between Syracuse and USF.
How to watch Boca Raton Bowl live
Date: Thursday, Dec. 21 | Time: 8 p.m. ET
Location: FAU Stadium -- Boca Raton, Florida
TV: ESPN | Live stream: Fubo (Try for free)
For a limited time, new subscribers can save $20 on Fubo's Pro, Elite and Premier plans.
Syracuse vs. USF: Need to know
Syracuse down its starting quarterback: Absences and availability issues are common for the bowl season, but Garrett Shrader's story is unique. The veteran quarterback announced that he was undergoing shoulder surgery and would miss the bowl game as a result, but noted that he had been playing with the injury for multiple weeks. Shrader noted his desire to put it all on the line to get Syracuse bowl eligible, and sure enough in that sixth win he threw three touchdown passes and ran for another. But without Shrader, Syracuse is likely to turn to Carlos Del-Rio Wilson, who has three touchdowns and six interceptions on the year, or a Wildcat package that utilizes tight end Dan Villari as a passing threat.
USF offense has lived up to the hype: Golesh was hired after being the offensive coordinator during Tennessee's breakthrough season in 2022, and in 2023 the Bulls delivered on USF's expectation of high-flying offense. The offense ranks in the top 20 nationally averaging 455.3 yards per game and quarterback Byrum Brown has become a star on the rise in the American, ranking first in the conference (and No. 7 nationally) in total offense, averaging 318.6 yards passing and rusher per game. Brown's already become the first-ever 3,000-yard passer in USF history, but his 64.1% completion percentage could be a single-season school record if it's maintained or improved in the bowl game.
Syracuse run game is the X-factor: The Orange may be down a head coach, a starting quaterback, and still dealing with the lingering effects of multiple season-ending injuries to key players through the year, but Campanile still has one of the best players on the field in LeQuint Allen. This season Allen became the 13th player in Syracuse history to rush for 1,000 yards and received All-ACC second-team honors during the postseason awards circuit. He's going up against a USF defense that ranks No. 131 nationally with 455.3 yards per game allowed and gave up more than 200 rushing yards on five different occasions.
Boca Raton Bowl prediction, picks
Odds via SportsLine consensus
One of these programs is in the midst of a total facelift while the other has used these 15 practices to start getting sharp for 2024 preparations. I think there is a decided advantage in USF's favor when it comes to the intangibiles, and so I'll roll the dice that there can be just enough timely stops to secure a program-establishing win for Alex Golesh. Pick: USF +3.5
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