Syracuse Orange quarterback Steve Angeli has been airing it out through three games. Angeli has completed 80 of 125 attempts for 1,072 yards, which puts him two yards ahead of Baylor’s Sawyer Robertson.
Last year Kyle McCord led the nation while averaging 367.6 yards per game on 45.5 attempts per game. Through the first three weeks, Angeli is averaging 357.3 yards per game on 41.7 attempts. It’s still very early, but Angeli’s yards per attempt (8.6 to 8.1) is slightly higher than McCord’s 2024 campaign.
On Friday night, Angeli tied Syracuse school records for passing touchdowns with five and total touchdowns with six. Yes, it was just Colgate on the opposite side, and yes Angeli probably should have been standing on the sidelines earlier, but it’s an amazing turnaround from the middle part of the UConn game where Angeli looked completely lost.
Anyone who thought Jeff Nixon was going to turn his offense into a power rushing attack is probably surprised by Angeli’s early-season numbers. However when you factor in the uncertainty on the offensive line, the injury to Yasin Willis and a deep and talented wide receiver room, it seems likely that the Orange will look to spread the field against Clemson next weekend. Angeli’s ability to control the quick passing game will likely be a key if Syracuse wants to get a win in Death Valley.
So far the Notre Dame transfer has shown why he was Fran Brown’s choice coming out of camp, and why the Syracuse staff made him a priority last spring when he hit the transfer portal. Let’s hope he can keep up this pace and keep the Orange offense moving.
