The Huskies are taking on the Orange on Saturday at noon ET.
After a disappointing loss in which they surrendered a 14-point lead to Miami (Ohio), the UConn Huskies football team will host the Syracuse Orange on Saturday afternoon at noon ET.
The Orange are 1-2 following back-to-back Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) losses against Cal and Pitt, but they've had a lot of time to prepare for this matchup, as they last played on Sept. 17.
The Huskies are now 2-2.
On Monday, we learned that the Orange plan to start quarterback Steve Angeli in this game, despite calls from SU fans for Amari Odom to start. Syracuse coach Fran Brown did say that Odom, a Kennesaw State transfer, will play, giving Jason Candle and his staff another thing to worry about.
Brown also indicated that freshman wide receiver Calvin Russell III will see his first action on Saturday, which is something we anticipated a few weeks ago.
"As much as possible, As much as his body allows him to play, which the training room now says he can. He has a player load we want to make sure he continues to hit. He hit it all last week. ... I’m really happy and excited about Calvin playing."
About Russell
A five-star wide receiver recruit from Florida, Russell is among the best recruits that Syracuse football has ever gotten. An unbelievable athlete, he left high school last December, enrolled in Syracuse early, and joined the school's basketball team. And while he played in just one game on the hardwood, it's still impressive that he was able to hang with a major college program during his "should be senior year of high school."
The reason why Russell has not played yet is because he tore his Achilles during spring football practice in March. He warmed up before each of the last two contests, but has ultimately been cleared now.
This has been an incredibly quick recovery for Russell, who is making it back barely six months after the usually-devastating injury.
For instance, Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum tore his Achilles in May of 2025 and didn't return until March of 2026 (10 months). Tyrese Haliburton of the Indiana Pacers tore his in June of 2025 and didn't return at all last season, though part of that was probably because of the team's poor record.
What else to think about
Russell will pair with two solid wide receivers in Umari Hatcher and Justus Ross-Simmons. Angeli has struggled at the quarterback position, throwing five interceptions in his last two games, but with a full bevy of weapons, there's plenty of firepower for him in this game.
