The Syracuse Orange football team is officially entering crunch time in the 2026 campaign. The last month of the regular season is here, and so are the final three games of the year. The Orange need victories in two of them to reach six wins and bowl eligibility after falling short in an 18-13 loss to the Clemson Tigers.
Syracuse is back on the road, this time to take on the NC State Wolfpack. Here’s how the rest of the college football world is feeling about the Orange heading into their second-to-last
conference game of 2026.
ESPN
Syracuse dropped three spots, from No. 82 to No. 85, in ESPN’s updated SP+ rankings. That includes No. 81 on offense, No. 82 on defense, and No. 100 in special teams. NC State is just ahead at No. 81.
ESPN’s College Football Power Index now projects the Orange for between 5.2 and 6.8 wins, with a 36.6% chance to get at least six victories.
CBS Sports
Syracuse moved four spots down to No. 84 in CBS Sports’ latest rankings. NC State is at No. 80.
The Athletic
The Orange went from No. 65 to No. 67 in The Athletic’s updated FBS rankings. NC State sits at No. 84.
College Football News
Syracuse is still top 50 according to College Football News, down from No. 48 to No. 50 in its current rankings. NC State dropped slightly to No. 65.
Syracuse.com
Syracuse is ranked 11th this week by the local reporters. NC State is ranked 13th this week.
AP and Coaches Poll
No votes for either squad in the latest AP and coaches polls.
ACC Week 10 Scores
- Virginia Tech 28, SMU 51
- Miami 24, Notre Dame 31
- Merrimack 0, Wake Forest 77
- Clemson 18, Syracuse 13
- Florida State 31, Boston College 24
- North Carolina 38, UConn 21
- Duke 41, NC State 3
- Louisville 44, Georgia Tech 17
ACC Week 11 Schedule
- Florida State vs. Pittsburgh (Friday)
- Duke vs. Miami (Saturday)
- Wake Forest vs. SMU (Saturday)
- Syracuse vs. NC State (Saturday)
- Georgia Tech vs. Clemson (Saturday)
- Boston College vs. Notre Dame (Saturday)
- California vs. Virginia (Saturday)
- Louisville vs. North Carolina (Saturday)
- Stanford vs. Virginia Tech (Saturday)
