After going 3-9 in 2025, the Syracuse football program undoubtedly enters a new campaign with some questions and some doubts.

That said, what should the proper expectations be from the outside?

They tackled that question this week on 'Cuse Sports Talk, reminding people that the over/under is set at 4.5 wins. The hosts said that five wins should be the expectation for this season, and then the hope for 2027 should be a College Football Playoff berth with Steve Angeli during his senior year at quarterback.

What do we think of that? Well for me, five wins feels too low this year.

For starters, Syracuse was 3-1 last season while Angeli was healthy. They already showed the ability to win games with him under center, so that should be the expectation with him back healthy from his torn Achilles. And, the quarterback room is much deeper this season, meaning that if Angeli were to get hurt again, there are real answers on the depth chart.

Furthermore, it's not like the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is some dominant entity anymore. Yes, Miami got to the national title game a year ago, but Clemson and Florida State have both been down for the last few years, meaning that nearly all conference games on the schedule should be winnable. 

It should be presumed that Syracuse can beat New Hampshire and UConn, giving them two wins. Boston College should also be viewed as a win, giving them three. North Carolina, who was way down under Bill Belichick in 2025, could be a win, as could several other games on the schedule.

From a betting perspective, it's understandable to say that five wins is the expectation with UNH, UConn, BC, North Carolina and simply one more the rest of the way, but for my perspective? This is a team that should win at least six games and get back to a bowl game.

Well, as always, with every football team, there are questions about how the group up front will work. Can the Orange's offensive line protect the quarterback? Can the defensive line get after the opposing quarterback?

And, as we said a few weeks ago, who will the biggest weapons be on offense? Especially with top recruit Calvin Russell expected to miss most or all of the season with injury?

The Syracuse men's soccer team learned its schedule for 2026 on Saturday. The Orange will play six teams that went to the NCAA Tournament last season. You can view the entire schedule here.

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