Syracuse Orange vs. Virginia Cavaliers Odds, Line, Picks, and Prediction - September 23 | 2022 NCAA Football Season
The Syracuse Orange will play the Virginia Cavaliers on Friday. Syracuse are 3-0 after their resounding 32-29 victory last week over Purdue. Meanwhile, Virginia moved to 2-1 after a narrow 16-14 win against Old Dominion. These ACC teams haven't matched up since 2015, so we'll see if the Orange can maintain their perfect record on Friday.
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The Orange beat Purdue courtesy of an Oronde Gasden II touchdown with just seven seconds remaining. This was Syracuse's first tight game after two blowouts to open the season. The Cavaliers have also played just one close game, but the Orange are tabbed as decent favorites for Friday.
Virginia have struggled mightily on offense and at the moment rank 117th in the nation for points scored. Quarterback Brandon Armstrong has racked up a lot of yardage through the air and on the ground, totaling 710 passing yards and 150 rushing yards so far. His main targets have been receivers Keytaon Thompson and Lavel Davis Jr., so expect Armstrong to look their way many times on Friday.
The downfall for Virginia has been turnovers, as they're committing five per game. This simply can't happen if they're going to pull off an upset here.
Syracuse's defense should match up well with Virginia's offense on paper, as the Orange ranks 31st for the lowest points allowed in the country. Their run defense has been especially good as they're holding opponents to under 100 yards on the ground per contest.
Looking at Syracuse's offense, they've done a great job taking care of the ball, as they're yet to commit a turnover so far. Quarterback Garrett Shrader has tossed eight TDs, including the game winner last week. Shrader has been a threat on the ground all year, too, as he's amassed 201 rushing yards and three rushing TDs. Expect the Orange to rely heavily on Shrader as they try to move to 4-0.
Syracuse Orange vs. Virginia Cavaliers match details
Fixture: Virginia Cavaliers @ Syracuse Orange
Date & Time: Friday September 23, 7:00 p.m. EDT
Venue: JMA Wireless Dome, Syracuse, NY
Syracuse Orange vs. Virginia Cavaliers betting odds
Syracuse Orange vs. Virginia Cavaliers betting prediction
Syracuse's defense is the reason they're undefeated right now. Given how careless Virginia has been with the ball, the Orange should be able to assert their dominance. Syracuse's offense has surpassed 30 points in every game, but we could see a more defensive game tonight. All of Virginia's games have gone under this year, and five of Syracuse's last six on turf have gone under too. Back the under here in this all-ACC affair.
Prediction: Under 53.5 (-110)