Syracuse men's lacrosse releases 2022 schedule

Happy Holidays, Syracuse Orange lacrosse fans!

Since we’ve all been so good and patient, we were rewarded on Thursday as Syracuse released the 2022 men's lacrosse schedule that will officially begin the Gary Gait coaching era on the men’s side.

And what a gift it is. A 14-game schedule that is overflowing with big name opponents and some old rivals who we haven’t seen recently.

I mean, where to start?

Just like last year, we’ve got six ACC regular season games with no ACC tournament, playing Virginia and Notre Dame twice. We resume our rivalries with Johns Hopkins and Hobart after not seeing them last year, and with Cornell for the first time since 2019. Oh, and we’ve added Maryland back on to the schedule to really spice up our non-conference lineup.

In total, SU is playing all four teams that made the Final Four last year a total of five times - so that’s fun!

Gary Gait will coach his first game as head coach of the men’s program on February 12, 2022, as Holy Cross comes to the Dome.

A week later will be a day to remember for Syracuse fans. The Orange host Maryland on February 20 as part of a doubleheader with the women’s team in which three SU lacrosse legends will be honored. Roy Simmons, Jr. will be inducted into the Syracuse Ring of Honor, while Gary Gait and Katie Rowan will be the first players in program history to have their jerseys retired. It’s going to be quite the day of celebration in the Dome as the Orange take on last year’s national runners-up.

The following weekend sees SU’s first road trip of the season to face the two-time defending national champion Virginia on February 26. The Orange inexplicably owned the Cavs last year, beating them twice in a season in which they looked incompetent against almost every other top-flight team.

The team then heads back home for a (kind of weird) Wednesday game against an always-tough Army team on March 2. Then, on March 6, the Kraus-Simmons Trophy is once again up for grabs as SU and Hobart resume their rivalry after a one year COVID-induced sabbatical.

On March 13, another big rivalry resumes as the Orange head down to Homewood Field to play Johns Hopkins in Dave Pietramala’s official return to his old stomping grounds. Not that Syracuse-Hopkins needed any more juice, but now its got it.

‘Cuse will play its second-ever game against Stony Brook on March 19, this time out on Long Island. SU will then come home for their only game against Duke on March 26, before heading back out on the road to play Notre Dame on April 2 and a Thursday tilt with Albany on April 7 to close out a stretch of four out of five games away from home.

The Orange’s trip to the state capital will be their first in their series with the Great Danes, and Gait’s boys can expect one of the most raucous atmospheres of the year for a night game at Casey Stadium.

On the following Monday, April 11, SU will resume playing Cornell after a two-year break when the Big Red come to the Dome. April 16 will see the final road trip of the season as the Orange head down to Tobacco Road to play North Carolina.

The regular season will conclude with the return games in the Dome against Virginia on April 23 and Notre Dame on May 1.

This is, obviously, a very difficult schedule for a Syracuse program in transition. It’s not necessarily a surprise, as Gary Gait showed us with his scheduling habits on the women’s side.

Six games against the best conference in the country, plus Maryland, Johns Hopkins, Army, Cornell, Albany, Hobart and Stony Brook. Whew! This is going to be a ride, boys and girls!

I hope everybody’s as excited about the early Christmas gift as I am and can’t wait to get things rolling. For now, everybody stay safe and have a very Happy New Year!

See you in 2022 lacrosse fans!