Every 2018 Syracuse football opponent preview (full list with links)

Hopefully you’re all enjoying a day off for July 4 (and don’t worry, I am too). But with the conclusion of our early 2018 Syracuse Orange football opponent series on Tuesday, I wanted to put everything in one place, with links to prevent unnecessary searching for all of these articles we’ve been creating since April.

Below is a collection of links to all 12 Syracuse football opponent previews on TNIAAM. Click away to catch up on what to expect for each team as we continue writing about other aspects of the upcoming football season.

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Week 1: at Western Michigan Broncos

Last year: 6-6 (4-4 in MAC)

TNIAAM’s Western Michigan preview

Big Takeaway:

“If the offense makes strides and the defense avoids a drop-off, this is a team with one sure loss in Michigan, then a whole lot of opportunity. As Syracuse knows all too well, though, just because there are a lot of toss-ups games on paper doesn’t mean you’re going to win even half of them.”

Week 2: Wagner Seahawks

Last year: 4-7 (2-4 in NEC)

TNIAAM’s Wagner preview

Big Takeaway:

“Wagner has a tough schedule ahead this fall, with seven road games, including four of the first six contests and the final two as well. They’ll face two of the NEC’s top three teams from last year -- Central Connecticut State and Bryant — away from home. Road dates against Syracuse and Montana State obviously won’t help matters either.”

Week 3: Florida State Seminoles

Last year: 7-6 (3-5)

TNIAAM’s Florida State preview

Big Takeaway:

“Florida State brings much more modest expectations to the table in 2018, but are still expected to bounce back in some way under Taggart, who has now re-energized a few programs (WKU, USF, Oregon) with his up-tempo style. Unlike those stops, however, the ‘Noles are typically thought to be championship contenders and have very little leeway for a long rebuild. Conversely, it would stand to reason that once he gets FSU up and running, he’ll be around to reap the benefits a little longer.”

Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports

Week 4: Connecticut Huskies

Last year: 3-9 (2-6 in AAC)

TNIAAM’s UConn preview

Big Takeaway:

“Defensively, there’s literally no way to they can get worse, especially against the pass. Much of the secondary has returned, while UConn hits a hard reset on the front seven. No one there really has much experience after a ton of seniors graduated and quite a few players departed the program in the offseason. The pass defense should improve given experience, but that jump may not be all that noticeable if the team can’t get any sort of pressure up front.”

Week 5: at Clemson Tigers

Last year: 12-2 (7-1)

TNIAAM’s Clemson preview

Big Takeaway:

“You’re not going to believe this, but Clemson is going to be very good once again. The Tigers are No. 3 in early S&P+ projections, and also third in terms of returning production. If you look up and down the ACC, they appear to be head and shoulders above everyone else right now — especially in the Atlantic Division. The closest comparison is probably Miami.”

Week 6: at Pittsburgh Panthers

Last year: 5-7 (3-5)

TNIAAM’s Pitt preview

Big Takeaway:

“The Panthers’ offensive line is new, but there are questions in the Orange front-seven. Pittsburgh could get a slight advantage due to being at home, but that’s really it. If SU’s new receivers have figured something out by this point, it could be a big opportunity for Syracuse to pick them apart on shorter passes while they prevent big plays down the field.”

Rob Kinnan-USA TODAY Sports

Week 8: North Carolina Tar Heels

Last year: 3-9 (1-7)

TNIAAM’s North Carolina preview

Big Takeaway:

“Bouncing back will be no easy task for Fedora and UNC, as the coach is potentially on the hot seat with a lot of youth and a tough schedule. The Heels are on the road in the first two weeks, against Cal and East Carolina, then host UCF -- a team that hasn’t lost a game since 2016. Miami, Syracuse, Virginia and Duke are also road games. The only surefire win on the home slate is Western Carolina.”

Week 9: N.C. State Wolfpack

Last year: 9-4 (6-2)

TNIAAM’s NC State preview

Big Takeaway:

“How you feel about State is dictated by whether or not you think they can just reload after losing those four linemen, Hines, Samuels and offensive tackle Will Richardson to the draft. Finley remains, but there’s a significant amount of turnover and a lot of youth that will have to step into those spots and replace big production — looking at Chubb, Hines and Samuels most of all.”

Week 10: at Wake Forest Demon Deacons

Last year: 8-5 (4-4)

TNIAAM’s Wake Forest preview

Big Takeaway:

“Last year’s loss to Wake Forest was demoralizing, but we can’t just pretend the electrifying first half (when Syracuse led 38-24) failed to occur. Even without Eric Dungey in that one, the Orange were able to throw all over the Deacons’ secondary and likely do so again this season -- especially with a lesser pass-rush coming at them. The difference will be whether or not they can contain the speedy Hinton. Unlike Wolford, who was a passer first, Hinton is more of a pure dual-threat at QB.”

Jamie Rhodes-USA TODAY Sports

Week 11: Louisville Cardinals

Last year: 8-5 (4-4)

TNIAAM’s Louisville preview

Big Takeaway:

“Life without Jackson is going to get interesting. It’s not as if teams can’t replace starting quarterbacks. But Jackson accounted for such a large share of the offensive output that the Cardinals are guaranteed to take some sort of step back on that side of the ball this year. At least they’ll return four of five on the line and all three starting receivers to make up for it.”

Week 12: Notre Dame Fighting Irish (at Yankee Stadium)

Last year: 10-3 (N/A)

TNIAAM’s Notre Dame preview

Big Takeaway:

“Lea taking over this defense could go one of two ways: the Irish blitz the hell out of Syracuse and put this improved Orange line to the test all day, to our ultimate demise. Or SU is able to protect against the pressure and finally get that quick passing game going en route to a surprising performance. Some of that will depend on the weather, admittedly. If we’re looking at something a bit wetter (and colder) side, that will certainly favor Notre Dame’s run-heavy attack.”

Week 13: at Boston College Eagles

Last year: 7-6 (4-4)

TNIAAM’s Boston College preview

Big Takeaway:

“This year’s schedule will be the biggest challenge for the Eagles. All five road games (Wake Forest, Purdue, NC State, Virginia Tech, Florida State) could prove challenging, and they’ll also host Miami and Clemson. That’s a lot to get past, right off the bat.”