Orange and #24 Vols Open 2025 Saturday on ABC
8/29/2025 7:30:00 AM | Football
SYRACUSE vs. TENNESSEE
Game Details:Â 12Â p.m. | Saturday, Aug. 30
Location: Atlanta, Ga. | Mercedes-Benz Stadium
Tickets: Cuse.com/AflacKickoff
Television: ABC
Game Links: Watch | Listen | Live Stats
Radio:Â Syracuse Sports Network from Learfield
Twitter: @CuseFootball | @Cuse
Syracuse Links: News | Roster | Schedule | Notes
Tennessee Links: News | Roster | Schedule | Notes
OPENING DRIVE
• Syracuse opens the 2025 season against Tennessee in the Aflac Kickoff at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
• The Orange will play in their first neutral site game to start the season since 2013 when 'Cuse opened the year against Penn State in the NY College Classic at MetLife Stadium
• Syracuse will open the season away from home for the first time since playing at Ohio to start the 2021 campaign.
• The game will air on ABC, with Bob Wischusen (PxP), Louis Riddick (analyst) and Kris Budden (reporter) on the call.Â
EVERY 'CUSE CLICK COUNTS
• The first game of the 2025 slate will be broadcast on ABC, showcasing Syracuse to the national TV audience.
• There are more ways than ever that fans can have a direct financial impact on Syracuse Athletics, one of which is by making sure you watch every game you can't attend. Television ratings now have an impact on revenue distribution in the ACC. Make sure you're always watching the Orange, whether from the Dome or at home, because Every 'Cuse Click Counts.
FAN INFORMATION
• For fans making the trip to Atlanta, there are a number of opportunities to make the most of your trip.Â
• When the team arrives (approximately 9:45 a.m.), they'll walk across the Home Depot Backyard en route to the stadium. Fans are encouraged to arrive early and cheer the team on before entering the stadium.
• Fans in Atlanta or watching on TV should make sure you update the 'Cuse App on your mobile device to follow along in the newly designed game center, with additional stats and original content that can supplement your television viewing experience.
• As part of Syracuse University's new brand partnership with Coca-Cola, there will be exclusive perks in Atlanta. 'Cuse fans will get 10-percent off admission tickets to the World of Coca-Cola, where custom Syracuse x Coca-Cola cans are available for purchase. Use the promo code SYRACUSE2025 online or at walk-up.
• Rally Cry – EA Sports College Football Truck will be on site at the Georgia International Plaza, on the Northeast side of Mercedes Benz Stadium) to engage fans from Syracuse University and University of Tennessee in game-play matchups.
• Visit Cuse.com/AflacKickoff for other activities around Atlanta this weekend.
SYRACUSE IN SEASON OPENERS
• Syracuse holds an 88-43-4 record in season-opening contests.Â
• The Orange are 1-0 in season openers under the direction of head coach Fran Brown. Brown guided Syracuse to a 38-22 victory in his 'Cuse debut last season in the JMA Wireless Dome.
• The team has won 10 of its past 11 season openers, defeating Ohio (2024), Colgate (2023), Louisville (2022), Ohio (2021), Liberty (2019), Western Michigan (2018), Central Connecticut State (2017), Colgate (2016), Rhode Island (2015) and Villanova (2014). The only blemish was a loss at North Carolina in the 2020 opener.
YEAR TWO OF COACH FRANÂ ERA BEGINS
• Head coach Fran Brown begins his second season at the helm of the Orange program. He put together one of the most successful campaigns for a first-year Syracuse head coach in program history.
• Brown guided the Orange to a 10-win season in first season on the 'Cuse sideline, tying Paul Paul Pasqualoni (1991) for the most victories by a coach in his first season at Syracuse. The 10 wins tie for the third-most victories in a season in program history and was just the third double-digit win campaign for Syracuse since the start of this century.
• Brown earned the Paul "Bear" Bryant Newcomer Coach of the Year Award and the Steve Spurrier First Year Coach of the Year Award .
FACING THE BEST
• Syracuse is one of two teams that will face four opponents this season that played in last year's College Football Playoff. The Orange will face Tennessee, Clemson, SMU and Notre Dame, all on the road. Mississippi State will also face four CFP teams from a year ago (Arizona State, Tennessee, Texas, Georgia), but all four will be played at home.
• In addition, the Orange join Florida and Texas as the only schools in the nation that will play five road games against teams that are ranked in the Associated Press preseason top 25.Â
• Syracuse is the only school in the ACC that will face five or more teams that are ranked in the preseason top 25.Â
DISRUPTIVE DIGGS
• Syracuse will select captains for each game.
• Captains for Saturday's game will be DL Dion Wilson Jr., DB Duce Chestnut, P Jack Stonehouse and OL Da'Metrius Weatherspoon.
SERIES HISTORY
• Syracuse and Tennessee will meet for the fourth time. The Volunteers have won each of the previous three meetings between the teams.
• The first game between Syracuse and Tennessee took place in the 1966 Gator Bowl in Jacksonville, Florida. RB Floyd Little rushed for 216 yards, which still stands as Syracuse bowl game record, and earned the game's Most Valuable Player award.
A WIN WOULD …Â
• Mark Syracuse's fifth-consecutive victory in its season opener and 11th win in the past 12 season openers.
• Improve head coach Fran Brown's record to 2-0 in season openers.
• Make Brown 4-1 vs. ranked opponents.
• Give Syracuse its 765th all-time victory (includes 11 wins from 2004-06 that were vacated by the NCAA). The Orange currently rank 21st on the FBS ledger of winningest programs. Syracuse is one of 37 FBS schools to have accumulated 700+ wins.
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Game Details:Â 12Â p.m. | Saturday, Aug. 30
Location: Atlanta, Ga. | Mercedes-Benz Stadium
Tickets: Cuse.com/AflacKickoff
Television: ABC
Game Links: Watch | Listen | Live Stats
Radio:Â Syracuse Sports Network from Learfield
Twitter: @CuseFootball | @Cuse
Syracuse Links: News | Roster | Schedule | Notes
Tennessee Links: News | Roster | Schedule | Notes
OPENING DRIVE
• Syracuse opens the 2025 season against Tennessee in the Aflac Kickoff at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
• The Orange will play in their first neutral site game to start the season since 2013 when 'Cuse opened the year against Penn State in the NY College Classic at MetLife Stadium
• Syracuse will open the season away from home for the first time since playing at Ohio to start the 2021 campaign.
• The game will air on ABC, with Bob Wischusen (PxP), Louis Riddick (analyst) and Kris Budden (reporter) on the call.Â
EVERY 'CUSE CLICK COUNTS
• The first game of the 2025 slate will be broadcast on ABC, showcasing Syracuse to the national TV audience.
• There are more ways than ever that fans can have a direct financial impact on Syracuse Athletics, one of which is by making sure you watch every game you can't attend. Television ratings now have an impact on revenue distribution in the ACC. Make sure you're always watching the Orange, whether from the Dome or at home, because Every 'Cuse Click Counts.
FAN INFORMATION
• For fans making the trip to Atlanta, there are a number of opportunities to make the most of your trip.Â
• When the team arrives (approximately 9:45 a.m.), they'll walk across the Home Depot Backyard en route to the stadium. Fans are encouraged to arrive early and cheer the team on before entering the stadium.
• Fans in Atlanta or watching on TV should make sure you update the 'Cuse App on your mobile device to follow along in the newly designed game center, with additional stats and original content that can supplement your television viewing experience.
• As part of Syracuse University's new brand partnership with Coca-Cola, there will be exclusive perks in Atlanta. 'Cuse fans will get 10-percent off admission tickets to the World of Coca-Cola, where custom Syracuse x Coca-Cola cans are available for purchase. Use the promo code SYRACUSE2025 online or at walk-up.
• Rally Cry – EA Sports College Football Truck will be on site at the Georgia International Plaza, on the Northeast side of Mercedes Benz Stadium) to engage fans from Syracuse University and University of Tennessee in game-play matchups.
• Visit Cuse.com/AflacKickoff for other activities around Atlanta this weekend.
SYRACUSE IN SEASON OPENERS
• Syracuse holds an 88-43-4 record in season-opening contests.Â
• The Orange are 1-0 in season openers under the direction of head coach Fran Brown. Brown guided Syracuse to a 38-22 victory in his 'Cuse debut last season in the JMA Wireless Dome.
• The team has won 10 of its past 11 season openers, defeating Ohio (2024), Colgate (2023), Louisville (2022), Ohio (2021), Liberty (2019), Western Michigan (2018), Central Connecticut State (2017), Colgate (2016), Rhode Island (2015) and Villanova (2014). The only blemish was a loss at North Carolina in the 2020 opener.
YEAR TWO OF COACH FRANÂ ERA BEGINS
• Head coach Fran Brown begins his second season at the helm of the Orange program. He put together one of the most successful campaigns for a first-year Syracuse head coach in program history.
• Brown guided the Orange to a 10-win season in first season on the 'Cuse sideline, tying Paul Paul Pasqualoni (1991) for the most victories by a coach in his first season at Syracuse. The 10 wins tie for the third-most victories in a season in program history and was just the third double-digit win campaign for Syracuse since the start of this century.
• Brown earned the Paul "Bear" Bryant Newcomer Coach of the Year Award and the Steve Spurrier First Year Coach of the Year Award .
FACING THE BEST
• Syracuse is one of two teams that will face four opponents this season that played in last year's College Football Playoff. The Orange will face Tennessee, Clemson, SMU and Notre Dame, all on the road. Mississippi State will also face four CFP teams from a year ago (Arizona State, Tennessee, Texas, Georgia), but all four will be played at home.
• In addition, the Orange join Florida and Texas as the only schools in the nation that will play five road games against teams that are ranked in the Associated Press preseason top 25.Â
• Syracuse is the only school in the ACC that will face five or more teams that are ranked in the preseason top 25.Â
DISRUPTIVE DIGGS
• Syracuse will select captains for each game.
• Captains for Saturday's game will be DL Dion Wilson Jr., DB Duce Chestnut, P Jack Stonehouse and OL Da'Metrius Weatherspoon.
SERIES HISTORY
• Syracuse and Tennessee will meet for the fourth time. The Volunteers have won each of the previous three meetings between the teams.
• The first game between Syracuse and Tennessee took place in the 1966 Gator Bowl in Jacksonville, Florida. RB Floyd Little rushed for 216 yards, which still stands as Syracuse bowl game record, and earned the game's Most Valuable Player award.
A WIN WOULD …Â
• Mark Syracuse's fifth-consecutive victory in its season opener and 11th win in the past 12 season openers.
• Improve head coach Fran Brown's record to 2-0 in season openers.
• Make Brown 4-1 vs. ranked opponents.
• Give Syracuse its 765th all-time victory (includes 11 wins from 2004-06 that were vacated by the NCAA). The Orange currently rank 21st on the FBS ledger of winningest programs. Syracuse is one of 37 FBS schools to have accumulated 700+ wins.
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Players Mentioned
DB
/ Football
P
/ Football
OL
/ Football
DL
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Fran Brown Press Conference
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Fran Brown Postgame Press Conference
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