Orange Fall at Home Against Duke

Saturday, September 27

Syracuse, N.Y.

12 PM

Syracuse University

3-2 , 1-1

Duke

3-2 , 2-0

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

Duke

Syracuse

9/27/2025 3:14:00 PM | Football

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The Syracuse football team (3-2, 1-1 ACC) had its three-game winning-streak snapped by Duke (3-2, 2-0 ACC) on Saturday afternoon, falling 38-3 at the JMA Wireless Dome.

'Cuse evened the score at 3-3 with 4:10 remaining in the first quarter, then it was all Duke, scoring 35 unanswered points to hand the Orange their first ACC and home defeat on the season.

In his first career start, quarterback Rickie Collins tallied 229 passing yards and completed 65-percent of his passes, but the offense was unable to find the back of the end zone. Antoine Deslauriers led the way defensively, tying Cornell Perry (six) for the team lead in tackles, while the freshman linebacker also recorded his first career sack in the loss.

The Blue Devils won the toss and elected to defer, giving Collins and the Syracuse offense their first shot of the afternoon. Collins got the day started with a perfect strike to Johntay Cook for an 18-yard reception. Just a few plays later the two hooked up for another gain across the middle. Yet, a productive drive was cut short by a Duke interception.

The Blue Devils managed to work their way down to the Orange's five-yard line on the drive following the turnover. The Syracuse defense stood tall in the redzone to force Duke to settle for a field goal.

The Orange offense came out for the ensuing possession looking to answer. A 15-yard pass on third down from Collins to Darrell Gill Jr. kept the drive alive. Just a couple of plays later, Yasin Willis rumbled his way to a 35-yard run all the way down to the Duke five-yard line, hurdling a defender in the process. A Blue Devil redzone stand forced the Orange to settle for a field goal, with Tripp Woody knocking a 29-yard attempt through the uprights to tie things up, 3-3.

The Blue Devils responded with the first touchdown of the affair, with Nate Sheppard scoring on a 49-yard touchdown run, followed by a successful extra-point to give Duke a 10-3 lead with 3:12 left in the opening quarter.

Duke added onto its lead just six minutes of game time later, with Darian Mensah connecting with Cooper Barkate for a 34-yard touchdown to give Duke a 17-3 lead. The Blue Devils added another touchdown with 1:55 left in the half to take a 24-3 lead to the locker room.

The Orange defense came out of the break hot, forcing back-to-back three-and-outs. Deslauriers recorded his first collegiate sack on the second Blue Devil drive of the half, wrapping up Mensah for a 15-yard loss to stall the Duke drive.

After trading defensive stops to open the second half, the Blue Devils found the end zone late in the third with a Nate Sheppard 12-yard run, extending the lead to 31-3. Duke would add another touchdown in the fourth quarter, a 13-yard run from Anderson Castle, to wrap up a 38-3 win.

The Orange will have a chance to respond next week when they travel to Dallas for a matchup with SMU. The game will kickoff at 3:30 PM (EST) and air on ESPN2 or ACCN, with network designation to come after the conclusion of Saturday's slate..

Syracuse returns home to the JMA Wireless Dome on October 18 for a matchup with longtime rival Pitt. Tickets are available at Cuse.com/FootballTickets.