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Miami Gardens, Florida -- Syracuse sent out four true freshmen as its game captains. It opened against one of the best defensive lines in the country with two first-year players on its offensive line. The Orange relied on young safeties against Miami instead of its biggest defensive names, young receivers over a group once hailed as among the best in the ACC. Syracuse head coach Fran Brown provided a look at the Orange’s expected future during a 38-10 loss to the Hurricanes on Saturday at Hard Rock Stadium. For a half it was closer to the vision that the coach has promised for Syracuse. By the end, it was more of the same this season, a sixth consecutive loss by double-digits. This one was capped by the indignity of the Hurricanes rewarding their star right tackle Francis Mauigoa with their final touchdown, a 3-yard run with 2:59 remaining. Syracuse leaned on its youth early to match scoreless drives with the No. 18 team in the country, remaining even through four possessions. But when Miami inevitably pulled away it happened quickly. The Hurricanes broke open a scoreless game with two touchdowns over the course of 29 seconds in the second quarter The backbreaker was the defensive score, which followed an interception by backup quarterback Rickie Collins, his eighth in five games as a starter. Miami improved to 7-2 (3-2 ACC), avenging a loss to end last season that cost the Hurricanes a chance at the College Football Playoffs. The loss means that Syracuse (3-7, 1-6 ACC) will officially fail to qualify for a bowl game for the first time since 2021, a reality that seems likely to increase the Orange shift toward a youth movement. The damaging combination of losing key players to injury, facing one of the country’s most difficult schedules and owning the ACC’s youngest roster has led to one of the most non-competitive six-game stretches in Syracuse program history. Syracuse has lost its last six games, five against programs with winning records, by a total of 135 points. The last time Syracuse lost six straight games by more combined points was 1948, when the Orange lost six straight by 146 points. The six consecutive losses have all come since a season-ending injury to starting quarterback Steve Angeli. Without him, the Orange appears to have no good options to play the most important position in sports. Collins completed 12 of 25 passes for 85 yards and two interceptions. He was sacked six times and constantly under pressure as the Orange played without starting center Austin Collins and starting guard TJ Ferguson. It took Miami until the final minutes of the first half to break out of a defensive battle. The Hurricanes collected three chunk plays on their fifth drive, a stretch that included a screen pass with a devastating block from an offensive tackle and a throwback pass from star receiver Malachi Toney to star quarterback Carson Beck for a 14-yard touchdown with 2 minutes and 13 seconds remaining in the first half. Down two starters on its offensive line and with Collins continuing to struggle, the Orange got little traction against a defense that came into the game allowing an ACC-best 15.6 points per game. The most damaging blow for the Orange came the way it has so often this season, courtesy of a turnover by Collins. Collins came out of the two-minute timeout by throwing an interception to Auburn transfer Keionte Scott that the Miami cornerback returned 38 yards for a touchdown, giving the Hurricanes a 14-point lead. Syracuse had a chance to close the gap before halftime but Miami’s defense surrounded SU running back Yasin Willis and ripped the ball out of the running back’s hands at the 7-yard line with 7 seconds remaining. Syracuse scored its first points with 11:12 remaining in the third quarter, opting to kick a field goal on 4th-and-3. Collins’ second interception, with 1:28 remaining in the third quarter, bounced off the hands of a diving Darius Johnson and into the arms of Miami defensive back Jakobe Thomas, an absurdly unlucky bounce to highlight a stretch where little has gone right. The six-game losing streak is Syracuse’s longest since losing eight straight to end the 2020 season, a COIVD-impacted year in which the Orange finished 1-10. The Orange came in as a 28.5-point underdog. The spread was the largest since the final game of that season, a 45-21 loss to Notre Dame. Syracuse’s s only touchdown came with 24 second left, a 17-yard pass from Joe Filardi to Elijah Bakser-Washington. The Orange is off next week before ending the season with a trip to Notre Dame and a game against Boston College, which is the only team in the ACC without a conference win this season. Notes: Syracuse’s game captains were true freshmen Demetres Samuel Jr., Antoine Deslauriers, Byron Washington and Darius Johnson. ... Syracuse cornerback Chris Peal had an interception in the first quarter called back due to holding penalty on him. It was his first penalty in pass coverage this season. ... True freshman and former Christian Brothers Academy star Matthew Hawn started the game for the Orange at right guard. He left after the first play. ... Three of Syracuse’s top recruits in the Class of 2026 were in attendance at the game including five-star wide receiver Calvin Russell. He was joined by four-star safety Tedarius Hughes and four-star defensive end Kamron Wilson. All four are from Miami. Wilson told Syracuse.com on Friday that he was not visiting Miami but was attending the game a high school teammate who had a Miami offer.
