Orange Back on the Road to Take on NC State Saturday

Syracuse is back on the road this weekend for a noon kickoff against NC State at Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh, N.C. The game will air on ACC Network.

The Orange have not played away from home since Oct. 24, and head coach Fran Brown is looking forward to matching up against a talented NC State program in a hostile environment.

"It's another game week and I'm excited," Brown said. "I can't wait to go down and play against NC State in the great atmosphere that they have down there. It's a good program with rich football history. I'm excited to go down there and compete with those guys."

Brown said the Wolfpack can hurt opponents on the ground and through the air, and he singled out quarterback CJ Bailey as an athletic dual threat his defense will have to account for this week.

"I think they have a lot of really good football players," Brown said. "They're going to be able to run the ball and throw the ball. They have a quarterback with a huge arm that can also run. He's a run and pass threat."

The Syracuse defense tasked with limiting Bailey is coming off a performance in which it did not surrender an offensive touchdown and held an opponent to fewer than 200 passing yards for the fifth time this season. Pass rushers Tunmise Adeleye and Keyshawn Johnson have been fixtures for the Orange, combining for 13 sacks this season. Their 13 sacks are tied for the fifth most among Power Four teammates.

Brown credited the duo's relentless approach and their buy-in to the program's D.A.R.T. culture, and he said Adeleye has built a case to be a high NFL Draft pick while Johnson has the chance to build on his production next season.

"They have a relentless approach and are living out the culture, D.A.R.T., and you're seeing that week in and week out," Brown said. "I think Tunmise has made a huge case for himself on why he should be a high NFL Draft pick. He's a leader on our football team, pushing the guys. Keyshawn gets the chance to come back next year and repeating what he's done, but adding a little bit more."

Three games remain in the regular season for the Orange, beginning with road trips to NC State and Boston College before a home finale against No. 3 Notre Dame. With three important tests ahead, Brown said his message to the team is to stay in the moment and enjoy the work.

"We just have to have fun," Brown said. "We have to have fun at practice, we have to enjoy practice. We know we're playing a tough opponent, we just have to have fun and practice hard because those guys are going to be ready to play football."

Saturday's game is the 18th all-time meeting between the Orange and Wolfpack. Syracuse has won the past two meetings, with the most recent coming in 2024 during Brown's first season as head coach. Kyle McCord led the offense in that game with 342 passing yards and two touchdowns.

Tickets to the regular season finale against Notre Dame are available at Cuse.com/FootballTickets.

Related News

Players Mentioned

Tunmise Adeleye

Keyshawn Johnson

Related Videos