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Syracuse begins its 2026 campaign Sunday against Boston University. The Orange have plenty of expectations after they fell short of a national championship last season. With a senior-led group, it’s Gary Gait’s best shot at winning a title since taking over five seasons ago.

BU will be a tricky test for Syracuse. The Terriers are one of the best teams in the Patriot League and won 11 games last season. They’re led by 12th-year head coach Ryan Polley, who’s ushered in six-straight winning seasons.

But if Syracuse wants to go all the way this season, it can’t slip up against BU.

Here’s how our beat writers feel No. 3 Syracuse (0-0, Atlantic Coast) will fare in its season-opener against No. 17 Boston University (0-0, Patriot):

Zak Wolf (0-0)
Not a pushover
Syracuse 15, BU 11

Anyone expecting this game to be a pushover is sorely mistaken. BU is a real test. The Terriers spoiled Army’s hopes of making the NCAA Tournament last season and took down Colgate in the regular season before falling in the Patriot League conference championship game. Timothy Shannehan — the reigning Patriot League freshman of the year — and Jimmy Kohr were two of BU’s three most productive players in 2025, and they’ll look to cause SU problems Sunday.

Despite the Terriers being a tricky first opponent, Syracuse will get the job done. The Orange have a clear advantage in net and at the faceoff X. Will Barnes, BU’s starting goalie the past two years, graduated, leaving the Terriers with an inexperienced netminder. With Syracuse’s attacking talent, good luck to whoever BU head coach Ryan Polley goes with. Faceoff specialist Murphy Madden had a solid freshman season, winning 55% of his faceoffs, but John Mullen is a different animal.

With a projected possession advantage and an untested goalie to pepper with shots, Syracuse might smell blood. But the Terriers’ 10-man ride could cause the Orange some issues. Polley has been at the helm for over a decade and will have his team ready to play.

Don’t be surprised if this is a close game in the first half, but Syracuse will separate in the latter stages. It might not be a dominant showing, but SU will get the job done and pass its first test in a crucial 2026 season.

Nicholas Alumkal (0-0)
Terrier Takedown
Syracuse 15, BU 9

Syracuse is better than Boston University. It’s that simple. The Terriers ended the 2025 season on a high note, reaching the Patriot League Championship before falling to Colgate. And, yes, BU returns Shannehan, one of the best freshmen in the nation last year, who looks to build off his 61-point 2025 tally. But the Orange should dispatch the Terriers.

Boston’s 10-man ride could cause opposition issues, but Syracuse has had plenty of time to prepare for the aggressive defensive tactics that send 10 outfield players to pressure the opponent as they build out of their defensive half in the shot clock’s first 30 seconds. Once SU escapes the ride, its attack should show early signs it has national championship bona fides.

Yes, clinical attackman Owen Hiltz and Swiss Army knife midfielder Sam English have graduated, but the Orange still have plenty of capable players who can step up. One of them is the best player in the sport in Joey Spallina. Another is ursine attack Payton Anderson. At the faceoff X, Mullen’s winning percentage jumped by 5.2 points from his freshman to sophomore season to 63%. I expect another slight increase this season, which will begin with a dominant day at the dot Sunday.

Mullen will keep winning faceoffs, the Orange will keep strafing the Terrier, and it’ll result in a season-opening victory for Syracuse.

Mauricio Palmar (0-0)
Bye, bye Boston
Syracuse 17, BU 10

My fellow scribe Zak certainly thinks this will be close, and I commend him for taking that stance. But I don’t foresee the Terriers giving Syracuse nearly as hard of a time as he does — I’m taking the Orange by a healthy seven-goal margin here.

In the first game of Spallina’s last season, he’ll want to make a statement, and I don’t foresee a way in which Boston University can stop him from doing so. Connor Kehm earned All-Patriot Second Team honors in 2025, and he might be able to limit Spallina early. But SU’s most explosive player will break through eventually, and even if he doesn’t, his attackmates will pick up the slack.

Finn Thomson — who is finally fully healthy — will start to look like the player who scored five goals against Harvard last season, while Anderson will build upon his impressive true freshman campaign with a multi-goal performance as well. Who knows? Maybe Michael Leo and Luke Rhoa join the party from midfield.

On the defensive end, Billy Dwan III and Riley Figueiras have spent years silencing All-Americans such as Brennan O’Neill, Pat Kavanagh and Coulter Mackesy. With respect to Shannehan and Kohr, I don’t think they’ll face as much difficulty preparing for that tandem. It’ll be a standout season-opening win over a ranked opponent, the perfect way for Gait to begin the most anticipated season of his tenure.

Published on January 29, 2026 at 2:10 am