Syracuse vs. Maryland: TNIAAM Score Predictions & Poll

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Matt McClusky

Syracuse 27 - Maryland 24

The defense does just enough against a rather solid Terrapins offense, while Terrel Hunt reminds fans why they were so excited about this program following the Texas Bowl win last year. It's not likely to be a pretty win, but that's kind of become Scott Shafer's calling card around here: close, ugly victories. Plus, the home crowd should actually help the home team this time around.

Ben Norowski

Syracuse 35 - Maryland 21

The Terps defense is an absolute train wreck right now, with Edsall admitting they need to go back to basics. They're vulnerable and we can definitely take advantage of that. Our defense held Maryland to 3 points last year (featuring a fireworks show after they scored!) and even with Stefon Diggs and Deon Long playing this year, I still think we contain CJ Brown and get him rattled enough that we can force a few turnovers. Rome and Hunt lit them up on the ground last season and I think our RBs have another excellent game with Hunt running for at least another 50. Lock the Gate!

Michael Burke

Syracuse 21 - Maryland 16

Terrel Hunt will thrive against a Maryland secondary that was picked to pieces last week by West Virginia quarterback Clint Trickett, who threw for 511 yards and four touchdowns against the Terrapins. And though they likely won’t contain him as well as they did a year ago, the Syracuse defense will be able to limit the damage done by C.J. Brown. Not only has Brown struggled in three consecutive games to begin this season, but he’s also proven, in two full seasons with Maryland, to be a far less dangerous quarterback on the road than he is at College Park.

Last week’s 37-point win at Central Michigan wasn’t an anomaly. Rather, I believe it was a sign of things to come for a Syracuse team that seemed to find itself against the Chippewas. 3-0, here we come!​

Sean Farrell

Syracuse 31 - Maryland 27

We've seen the best of Syracuse and the worst of Syracuse in just two games and I expect to see something in the middle against Maryland. The Terrapins haven't had any trouble scoring this season and go up against an unproven Orange secondary. It'll take a shootout to win, but Terrel Hunt will string together a second solid performance. He's going against a defense that gave up over 500 passing yards to West Virginia. Combine that with a multi-dimensional rushing attack and the Orange offense gets just enough to outscore the Terps.

John Cassillo

Syracuse 28 - Maryland 24

Syracuse's blitz gets into the backfield no problem, but with dual-threat C.J. Brown at quarterback, the defense takes a few drives to settle in and start stopping him from scrambling out of the pocket. The Orange offense, on the other hand, comes out strong with a perfect imitation of last week's efficiency, before Maryland finds a way to adapt and slow down the up-tempo attack. Turnovers end up deciding the final result, with Maryland's two outweighing Syracuse's one, giving the Orange a close but well deserved victory. A 3-0 start feels oh so good, no matter how you get there.

Jared Smith a.k.a. Disloyal Idiot

Maryland 16 - Syracuse 10

I hate to be the disloyal idiot of the group, but I just don't have a good feeling about this one. For some reason, it could be the B1G in the Terrapins, but, to me, this is going to feel like a old Syracuse-Rutgers crapfest and Maryland is going to come out on top. I really hope I am wrong.

Dan Lyons

Syracuse 31 - Maryland 27

I was prepared to pick Maryland early in the week, and I still don't feel great about a game against a mobile quarterback and two really great receivers, but the lack of enthusiasm by Maryland fans for C.J. Brown has really brought me around as much as anything else. Stefon Diggs and Deon Long are great, but not worth much if they can't get the ball. The news that Maryland's front seven is banged up is also enheartening. When George McDonald's offense is rolling, it is quite effective at chaining together really long, sustained drives, and with Terrel Hunt and Adonis Ameen-Moore, we have the personnel to really burn out a group that is lacking in depth. It won't be an easy game, and I'm sure there'll be at least one moment where we're cursing out our secondary, but I'll take the Orange at the Dome.

The Invisible Swordsman

Syracuse 17 - Maryland 13

With Syracuse and Maryland's offenses performing well last weekend, one might expect a high scoring game. I don't see it. Rather, I expect Syracuse's defense to continue their solid play, but turnovers and sloppy play will plague us yet again....keeping it far too close for comfort, and far too close for anyone to leave their seats early to go home. People, you STAY IN YOUR SEATS during a close game. Those Dome Foam cups are useful for more than drinking beer, you know what I mean??? Let your bladder feed your football passion!!! The hostile and uncomfortable Dome crowd will propel the Orange to a close victory!

Sean Keeley

Syracuse 28 - Maryland 27

I don't like this game. I don't like it one bit. You've got Orange Nation looking ahead to the possibility of being 3-0 when we head to MetLife to play Notre Dame with the potential of a GameDay crew on hand. And then there's Maryland, coming off a tough loss in which they proved they're capable of putting up bunches of points when they want to. You also can't use last year's result as proof we're going to win because the Terps were without their two biggest weapons, something we also benefited from last weekend. There is some serious potential here for a letdown at home.

And yet, I still feel like Syracuse is a better team than the naysayer in my brain thinks they are. CMU is not a terrible team and we thoroughly dismantled them. And I'm willing to believe that the offense we saw there is closer to the real thing than the one we saw against Villanova. I think the Orange are still a work in progress but they've progressed enough to pull our a very tough victory here and put them on a really good path headed into the meat of the schedule.

What say you?