Syracuse football 2025 opponent preview: Pittsburgh Panthers

Who’s ready for another top-100 rivalry game?

With a new Syracuse Orange football season looming, we’re pleased to say that a fan favorite TNIAAM series is making its return once again to help you get ready for the new year.

Just like that, the Orange are halfway through their 2025 schedule. In case you missed the opponent previews up to this point, we’ve covered the games against the Tennessee Volunteers, UConn Huskies, Colgate Raiders, Clemson Tigers, Duke Blue Devils and SMU Mustangs.

That leaves six games down, six more to go. After facing off against SMU in Texas and getting through its first of two bye weeks, up next for the Orange is a matchup that certainly made plenty of headlines for it being ranked as a top-100 college football rivalry in the sports’ history.

Syracuse returns to the JMA Wireless Dome to take on the Pittsburgh Panthers. Coach Pat Narduzzi and Pitt have had the clear advantage in the series this century, but if Syracuse were to win, being at home has certainly been a constant for that to happen.

Will ‘Cuse be able to overcome another dose of Narduzzi and take this one in the Dome, or do the Panthers silence the Orange crowd.

Here’s your breakdown of Syracuse’s matchup versus Pitt:

What to know about the Pittsburgh Panthers

School: University of Pittsburgh (Pittsburgh, PA)

Nickname: Panthers

Mascots: ROC the Panther

Photo by Joe Robbins/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

#BRAND Slogans: #HailToPitt, #H2P, #GoPanthers

Alternate #BRAND Slogans: #PittOfDoom, #BewareTheBurgh, #It’sNotStrictlyBusinessIt’sStrictlyNarduzzi

Conference: ACC

History vs. Syracuse: Syracuse is 33-44 with three ties versus Pitt dating back to October 1916. The Orange do have a winning record (19-18-3) when this matchup is played in Upstate New York. Syracuse most recently lost 41-13 in Pittsburgh in 2024. ‘Cuse has won just six games versus the Panthers dating back to 2000. Four have been in the Dome and five have been in New York.

Coach: Narduzzi’s routes in college football date back decades. The former linebacker at Youngstown State and Rhode Island started off as a graduate assistant with Miami (OH) in 1990, then as a receivers coach for the program. He then had stints with Rhode Island and Northern Illinois, then returned to Miami (OH) as defensive coordinator in 2003. One year later, he stayed in that role but for two different schools: Cincinnati (2004-06) and Michigan State (2007-14). Narduzzi became Pitt’s coach in 2015 and has held the role since. He is 72-56 in his 10 years with the Panthers with a 2-5 record in bowl games.

Photo by Aaron J. Thornton/Getty Images

2024 Record: 7-6 (3-5)

What happened last season: 2024 was a #SICKOS season and then some for the Panthers when the dust finally settled. There’s no better way to describe it than as a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde campaign.

Pitt began the year 7-0 with wins over Kent State, Cincinnati, West Virginia, Youngstown State, North Carolina, California and ‘Cuse. That dominant win over the Orange proved to be the apex for Pitt’s 2024 season. After ranking as high as No. 18 in the AP poll, the Panthers got smoked by SMU and Louisville, lost one-score games to Virginia and Clemson and fell to Boston College. Pitt ended the year with six-straight losses, capped off by a 48-46 defeat versus Toledo in the GameAbove Sports Bowl.

The quarterback situation was all over the place: four different players threw the ball at least 10 times. Eli Holstein led the way with a 61.9% completion percentage, 17 touchdowns and 7 interceptions. Desmond Reid (184 carries for 966 yards and 5 TDs, 52 catches for 579 yards and 4 TDs) was a force on offense, making first-team All-ACC.

On defense, the unit had some strong names, including LB Kyle Louis (All-ACC first-team) and S Donovan McMillon (All-ACC second-team), but gave up over 28 points per game in 2024 and absolutely could not stop the pass (third-most pass yards per game allowed).

Photo by Mike Mulholland/Getty Images

What happened during the offseason: The latest SP+ rankings from ESPN have Pitt ranked 33rd in returning production, including 66% of its offense (36th) and 61% of its defense (42nd) from 2024.

Pitt brought in 15 players from the transfer portal, but ranks just 63rd in 247Sports’ transfer football team rankings. All 15 additions are former three-star names, including former Oklahoma QB Cole Gonzales, former North Carolina CB Zion Ferguson, former Marshall TE Justin Holmes and former Michigan OT Jeff Persi.

In terms of recruitment, it’s a similar story. Pitt’s recruitment class ranks No. 51 overall per 247Sports, headlined by four-star ATH Josh Guerrier, three-star RB Synkwan Smith and three-star OT Shep Turk.

2025 season projections: Per FanDuel, Pitt sits middle of the pack in its chances to win the ACC at +4500. That’s ninth in the conference, sandwiched between NC State and North Carolina. Pitt’s over-under currently sits at 6.5 wins, with +116 for the over and -142 for the under.

Pitt starts at home versus Duquesne and Central Michigan before heading out on the road for The Backyard Brawl. The rest of the 2025 schedule includes home games versus Louisville, Boston College, NC State, Notre Dame and Miami (FL). Road matchups will be against ‘Cuse, Florida State, Stanford, and Georgia Tech.

Game Date: Saturday, October 18

Location: JMA Wireless Dome

Odds of Orange Victory: 42%

Odds of “marquee game” potential: 50%

Very Early Outlook vs. Syracuse: The case for Syracuse is purely context-based: having the bye week leading into the Pitt game is huge, and could be a reset point for the Orange after having to face the Mustangs. ‘Cuse has also historically had higher odds to win when it has been at home. Pitt the week before this game will also be up against Florida State in Tallahassee, and say what you want about FSU, but that game will be a dogfight.

The case against Syracuse falls on two main points: Pitt was really bad during the second half of 2024, but you could also make the case this team had a few outlier one-score losses, and the wheels fell off the cart from there. Especially on defense, there will be some progression back to the mean from last year. There’s also this: Syracuse happened to play Pitt off of a bye week and got clobbered. Different players and situations obviously, but still, a concern to at least flag.

I’ll settle my prediction with something in the middle: I think Syracuse can easily win this game and has some factors in its favor, but the Panthers’ continuity of a team that just won 7 games and brings back most of its key pieces is still a tough opponent for the Orange to face. The final score will be closer than 2024, but the final result stays the same in 2025.