Previewing Syracuse football’s season opener vs. New Hampshire
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Syracuse football is back. And the Orange will look a bit different from last season.
When SU takes the JMA Wireless Dome field on Saturday against New Hampshire, it’ll try to snap the eight-game losing streak that’s bothered everyone in the program since December.
Starting quarterback Steve Angeli is back under center. Angeli has made a full recovery from his Achilles injury in Week 4 of 2025, which should help bring SU’s offense back to form. The cast around him is a bit more suspect, but Syracuse’s bout with the Wildcats — the only Football Championship Subdivision opponent on its schedule — can weed out who can be a major contributor in 2026.
“I can’t wait for the first moment to pop in place,” SU head coach Fran Brown said Monday. “That’s what you really look for as a coach. You try to create as many of those opportunities in practice, but there’s nothing like the game.”
Here’s everything to know about New Hampshire (0-1, 0-1 Coastal Athletic) before it faces the Orange (0-0, 0-0 Atlantic Coast) in their season-opener Saturday:
All-time series
This is the two teams’ first-ever meeting.
The Wildcats report
Last season, New Hampshire finished the regular season 8-4 behind quarterback Matt Vezza, who tossed 19 touchdowns and added eight on the ground. The Wildcats’ campaign ended on a sour note, though, being decimated 41-3 by No. 14 seed South Dakota State in the FCS Championship First Round.
After Vezza transferred to Ohio, New Hampshire has already started the 2026 season on the wrong foot. The Wildcats fell 28-14 to conference foe UAlbany last weekend. The Great Danes bullied New Hampshire on the ground, only finishing with seven pass completions but a whopping 374 rushing yards.
That’s out of character for New Hampshire, which allowed 22.8 points per game last year, good for third in the CAA, and totaled 10 interceptions, tied for the conference’s most.
Versus UAlbany, New Hampshire rocked with Wingate University transfer Brooks Bentley under center. Bentley had a respectable stat line, going 19-for-27 for 230 yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions.
The Wildcats lost their top three receivers from last year, but Delaware transfer Ja’Carree Kelly picked up where they left off with six catches for 123 yards and a touchdown versus the Great Danes. New Hampshire retained starting running back Myles Thomason — who had nearly 1,000 total yards last year — but he only rushed 10 times for 53 yards last weekend.
How Syracuse beats New Hampshire
If there’s anything to gauge from UNH’s battle with UAlbany, it’s how easily the Great Danes exposed New Hampshire in the running game. Joey Koch had 144 yards on just seven carries, and two other players rushed for at least 60 yards. And unlike UNH, Syracuse has film to dissect exactly how UAlbany did it.
The Orange will be shorthanded at running back on Saturday, with LSU transfer Ju’Juan Johnson dealing with an injury, Brown revealed Monday. But Jackson State transfer Ahmad Miller will likely feast just like UAlbany did, with Tylik Hill and even Matt Outten — who Brown said will play both running back and receiver — pitching in, too.
Angeli will certainly be a major focal point in his return to the Dome, but Miller and Co. can help ease that pressure against a favorable matchup.
Stat to know: 1,815
Like Syracuse, one of New Hampshire’s weakest units is its wide receiver room. The Wildcats lost their top three receivers — Caleb Burke (764 yards), Chase Wilson (704 yards) and Casey McKinney (347 yards) — who combined for 1,815 yards last year. Their top returner in receiving is Thomason, a running back who finished with 30 catches for 233 yards last season.
The mass departures force transfers like Kelly and Ty Carlson, along with sparsely used returner Logan Perez, to step up. Eight UNH players caught a pass against UAlbany, while 10 were targeted.
The weak group should help the Orange’s defense ease back into the season, a welcome start after being one of the ACC’s worst units last year.
Player to watch: Ja’Carree Kelly, wide receiver, No. 9
If one player on New Hampshire’s offense stands out, it’s Kelly. In three years at Delaware, he never truly broke out. His most productive year came in 2025, when he hauled in 34 passes for 327 yards — more than half of his career totals (52 receptions for 503 yards). But maybe Kelly just needed a switch to the FCS.
No New Hampshire receiver came within 80 yards of his 123 versus UAlbany. He also hauled in a 45-yard touchdown that narrowed UNH’s deficit to 21-14 at the start of the third quarter.
Expect Kelly to be New Hampshire’s No. 1 target against the Orange. He’ll likely match up against one of SU’s star corners, Chris Peal or Demetres Samuel Jr.
