The North Carolina Tar Heels will host the Syracuse Orange on Saturday, setting up a battle of ACC hoops powerhouses on the gridiron. The Orange have lost four of their last five, while the Tar Heels have won back-to-back games to match their 2025 win total.
North Carolina is an 8.5-point home favorite on Saturday with -345 Moneyline odds, while Syracuse has +275 Moneyline odds. The game total for the conference showdown is set at 47.5 points. Here is a preview of the Week 8 contest featuring odds and lines from DraftKings Sportsbook.
Syracuse Orange vs. North Carolina Tar Heels Preview
Syracuse
Since stomping New Hampshire 66-3 in their season opener, Syracuse has been on a pretty steady downturn. The Orange lost by three at home against California, then hit the road and lost by 14 to Pittsburgh. They had another road game after their bye and beat UConn 42-41 in overtime, but have since lost by three at Virginia and by eight versus Louisville.
Coach Fran Brown clarified the Orange’s quarterback situation on Thursday when he told reporters that both Amari Odom and Malachi Nelson had both undergone surgery. Odom will miss the rest of the season recovering from his shoulder procedure, while Nelson could be back in a few weeks following a tightrope surgery on his high ankle sprain. That leaves Steve Angeli as Syracuse’s starting signal-caller, should he shake his own questionable tag. Of the five players who have attempted a pass for the Orange this season – including punter Jimmy Gregg – Angeli has the lowest passer rating at 116.9. The former Notre Dame transfer was pretty effective across four appearances in 2025, completing 62.8% of his passes for 1,317 yards, 10 touchdowns and two interceptions. This season, though, Angeli owns a 54.8% completion percentage with 731 yards, four touchdowns and five picks through three games.
Umari Hatcher has been Syracuse’s top wideout regardless of who is back to pass with his ACC-leading 784 yards and 50 catches. Tight end Daunte Bacheyie is the only other Orange pass-catcher with more than 200 yards or multiple touchdowns. Hatcher has found the end zone seven times, while Bacheyie has done so four times. On the ground, Tylik Hill has 431 yards in five games, but Ahmad Miller went for 123 yards against Louisville.
As it stands, Syracuse ranks No. 27 in total offense and No. 54 in scoring offense. On defense, the Orange rank No. 42 in yards allowed per game and No. 89 in points allowed per game. The discrepancy can partially be attributed to Syracuse’s turnover margin, which is tied for No. 121 in the country. In the opponent-adjusted SP+ efficiency, the Orange rank No. 78 on defense, No. 87 on offense, and No. 90 on special teams. They rank No. 84 overall in the metric.
North Carolina
Year two under Bill Belichick was teetering on the edge of disaster, even though the Tar Heels beat TCU 15-10 in their opener. North Carolina lost at Clemson and versus No. 3 Notre Dame, all while general manager Michael Lombardi and defensive coordinator Steve Belichick resigned amid controversy and investigations. UNC bounced back and upset Pittsburgh 21-17 on the road, though, then won 24-20 at Duke.
Quarterback Billy Edwards Jr. has a respectable passer rating of 139.8, in spite of his lackluster 59.9% completion percentage and nine-to-five touchdown-to-interception ratio. The former Wisconsin and Maryland signal-caller is averaging 13.4 yards per completion, which is good for No. 26 in the country and No. 4 in the ACC. Junior Jordan Shipp has been Edwards’ top target with his 33 receptions and 441 yards. Tight end Jelani Thurman is up next with 314 yards on 26 catches. He, fellow tight end Shamar Easter and running back Benjamin Hall are the only pass-catchers with multiple receiving touchdowns, combining for eight of Edwards’ nine scores.
Hall is up to 283 yards on 57 carries without a touchdown as a ball-carrier. Sophomore Demon June, meanwhile, has six touchdowns on his 50 carries with 192 yards. Jaylen McGill has also scored two touchdowns and actually leads the backfield trio with 5.7 yards per carry. Keep an eye on the usage split in the backfield, since Hall was questionable all week. Even Shipp was banged up at receiver, although he assured reporters that he will be active Saturday.
The Tar Heels’ No. 35 ranking in defensive SP+ counteracts their No. 75 offensive ranking, leaving them at No. 54 overall. Gregory Smith III is among UNC’s most productive defensive players, as the safety has three interceptions, a force fumble and a fumble recovery. And despite the Tar Heels only ranking No. 74 in total defense, their scoring defense ranks No. 34 in the country. That is 32 spots higher than where they finished 2025, while their scoring offense has only leapt from No. 120 to No. 102. North Carolina holds opponents to a 77.8% red zone scoring percentage, which ranks No. 37 in the FBS and No. 6 in the ACC.
Syracuse vs. North Carolina Pick, Best Bet
When Syracuse and North Carolina faced off last season, the Tar Heels emerged with a 27-10 victory. This year’s UNC squad is up from No. 91 to No. 54 in the SP+, while the Orange have gone from No. 115 to No. 84. So while both teams are improved, Syracuse has hardly closed the gap. Add in the fact that the rematch between Belichick and Fran Brown’s teams is taking place in Chapel Hill – plus the Orange’s quarterback chaos – and there is a path towards a comfortable Tar Heels win on Saturday. The SP+ model projects North Carolina to win 30-20, too, as they prepare to face the worst FBS opponent on their schedule to date.
