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All that was on Fran Brown’s mind was winning a national championship. That’s what the then-first-year head coach said after taking down then-No. 8 Miami en route to a 10-win season in 2024.

In fact, it wasn’t good enough. He soaked in the field storm but quickly noted that it wasn’t his first time. He’s a winner, he boasted. And when asked if it’s what he envisioned for Syracuse while at the helm, Brown reached for an even higher standard.

“No, not at all,” Brown said on Nov. 30 of last year. “I wanted to win a national championship. I wanted to go to the conference championship. Those two things didn’t happen. I guess it’s progress. But I will never be satisfied with second place or third place. That’s a loser’s mentality.”

Eleven months later, Brown packed a significant change in tone through his words and actions on Friday. Redshirt sophomore Rickie Collins wouldn’t have definitively secured a win for the Orange on Friday night. The quarterback tallied four touchdowns to seven interceptions en route to a 0-4 record as a starter.

But by turning to a walk-on true freshman against one of the greatest football minds to grace the earth, Brown made a mockery of everything he’s built. Joe Filardi went just 4-of-18 for 39 passing yards as Syracuse (3-6, 1-5 Atlantic Coast) fell to North Carolina (3-5, 1-3 ACC) 27-10 for its fifth straight loss.

What did you expect?

Brown was quick to remind the media postgame Friday of the last time Syracuse won a national title. That was 66 years ago. He then reminded everybody when the Orange last won an ACC title. The answer is never. This isn’t the title-chasing standard. It’s a rebuild in progress, which turned into an embarrassment on national television.

“Stop all this, ‘We just went winning every year,’” Brown said. “I just want to make sure that we’re going to get this going and we’re going to keep building it. It’s going to be done the right way. And as we do start to win, we’re going to be able to sustain it.”

Based on fall training camp practices open to the media, Filardi started the year as the fifth or sixth man on the depth chart. The idea of him touching the field at that point was laughable. Fast-forward two months, and Filardi worked his way to the top “strictly through practice,” as Brown described it. The decision was made Thursday, Brown said, and was spread through the universe just hours before Friday night’s affair.

Joe Filardi scrambles out of the pocket Friday against the Tar Heels. Filardi played his first career college snaps in SU’s defeat, yet his four completions marked the least by Syracuse in a game since 2002. Lars Jendruschewitz | Senior Staff Photographer

While a system built on working your way up is admirable, the Orange weren’t matching up with a Pop Warner coach from Baldwinsville. This is Bill Belichick. You know, the guy with 333 NFL wins and eight Super Bowl rings on his mantle. Yeah, that one. Sure, he’s turned into the laughing stock of college football this season. But he’s still Belichick.

The Tar Heels’ head coach admitted postgame that the switch to Filardi created a pregame “scramble.” However, from experience, he knew Syracuse’s offense couldn’t change much in a week, let alone a short one.

Brown obviously wouldn’t admit throwing Filardi into the fire was a mistake. He actually advocated it as a positive, claiming it showed the program could develop talent. SU did turn its fifth-string quarterback, who was running wide receiver routes in the spring, into a starting signal caller.

He even compared Filardi’s journey to that of now-NFL quarterbacks Baker Mayfield and Stetson Bennett. Mayfield notably began his college career as a walk-on at Texas Tech before transferring to Oklahoma, winning the Heisman Trophy and becoming the 2018 NFL Draft’s No. 1 pick. Bennett, who played at Georgia while Brown coached there, led the Bulldogs to two national titles after starting in the same position.

Filardi did all he could. He might even develop into a fine starting option in the future. But do you really think a walk-on, who came to Syracuse as a four-star lacrosse recruit, is going to help you reach your national title dreams? The answer is no.

Now, let’s keep in mind Steve Angeli’s injury. Kyle McCord completed at least 24 passes in his 13 games as SU’s starter. Angeli looked to be the second-coming of McCord, leading the nation in passing until he tore his Achilles versus Clemson. If we’re playing the “what-if game,” the Orange are likely over the .500 mark with Angeli. Brown is notably building for the future by playing a flurry of underclassmen and adding more top recruits like five-star Calvin Russell, who was in attendance Friday night.

But what happened to not being satisfied with second or third place? Playing the true freshman quarterback against one of the all-time greats for a “spark” feels like a loser’s mentality. So does looking to the past to display what Syracuse lost in the offseason.

“I want to win, guys, I want to win by all means,” Brown said. “And last year, we were able to go do that. But I had 12 guys leave to go to the NFL. Naturally, there wasn’t 12 waiting to go to the league the next year.”

Syracuse quarterback Rickie Collins stands on the sidelines during SU’s blowout loss to UNC. Collins didn’t play a single snap Friday after throwing seven interceptions and totaling a 55% completion percentage across the past four games. Lars Jendruschewitz | Senior Staff Photographer

And why was now the right time for a change? Brown said it was a month straight of losing football, and he felt it was time to get other players involved. That’s fair. But Brown’s answer made it seem like some outside noise got through.

“You guys kept asking me, ‘Are you gonna get another quarterback? Are we gonna get another quarterback?’” Brown said. “And then when you get the opportunity to see another quarterback, now you want to question ‘Why do we have another quarterback?’”

Collins wasn’t good in his time under center. But he did make progress, not throwing an interception in his final start against Georgia Tech last weekend. When asked postgame by The Daily Orange, Brown admitted he did think of putting Collins into the game Friday as the score was out of hand in the final minutes. However, he rightfully thought it wouldn’t be fair to Filardi or Collins. Or even Luke Carney, who came in for two drives in the third quarter.

Brown isn’t afraid to take accountability for his mistakes. It’s part of his D.A.R.T moniker. It’s also what helped the Orange climb so high in his debut season. He again was accountable on Friday night, and he should be respected for that.

The quarterback change against UNC wasn’t the difference between reaching the national title or not. Either way, Syracuse was not going to find its way to Miami in late January.

He’s pushed plenty of correct buttons through 22 games in charge. That’s why the standard is so high. But on Friday, Brown ushered in an abomination to what he calls the “Block S.” This was simply not the shot.

Aiden Stepansky is a Senior Staff Writer for The Daily Orange, where his column appears occasionally. He can be reached at amstepan@syr.edu or on X @AidenStepansky.

Published on November 1, 2025 at 2:50 am
Contact Aiden at: amstepan@syr.edu | @AidenStepansky