Ohio vs Syracuse Prediction College Football Picks 8/31/24

The Ohio Bobcats and the Syracuse Orange meet Saturday in college football action from JMA Wireless Dome. Here’s an Ohio vs Syracuse prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best Ohio vs Syracuse pick. We will examine:

The Ohio Bobcats recent form and player performance

The Syracuse Orange recent form and player performance

Recent betting trends and streaks involving the Ohio Bobcats

Recent betting trends and streaks involving the Syracuse Orange

Recent betting trends in games played between Ohio and Syracuse

A summary that ties it all together and produces a favorable betting outcome for the Ohio vs Syracuse game

Ohio Bobcats Betting Preview

The Bobcats posted a pretty solid overall record in 2023, going 10-3 with a 6-2 run in Mid-American Conference matchups. Ohio finished a game behind Miami-OH in the East Division though, missing out on the conference championship game. The Bobcats did beat Georgia Southern in the Myrtle Beach Bowl 41-21, however.

This year will mark head coach Tim Albin’s fourth season at the helm. He’ll get a pair of new coordinators along with a ton of fresh faces in uniform. Twelve of Ohio’s players transferred to programs in power conferences, including 2022 MAC Player of the Year Kurtis Rourke.

Syracuse Orange Betting Preview

Over on the Syracuse side, they managed to go 6-7 overall last year with a 2-6 run in ACC play. The Orange finished ahead of only Virginia, Pittsburgh and Wake Forest with that conference result. In the Boca Raton Bowl against South Florida, Syracuse ended their campaign with a blowout loss 45-0.

Syracuse enters a new era under head coach Fran Brown this year. He succeeds Dino Babers, who had just two winning seasons in his eight years at the helm. The Orange lost 35-plus players to graduation and the transfer portal. They’ll need some help on offense this season; Syracuse is coming off 343.3 yards per game in 2023—third-worst in the conference.

Why the Syracuse Orange will win

• Syracuse has won seven of its last eight games against non-conference opponents at JMA Wireless Dome.
• Syracuse has covered the spread in five of its last six season openers.
• Ohio has failed to cover the spread in 12 of its last 16 games against non-conference opponents.

Why the Ohio Bobcats will win

• Ohio has won each of its last four games against non-conference opponents.
• Ohio has covered the spread in three of its last four games.
• Syracuse has failed to cover the spread in three of its last four games at JMA Wireless Dome.

Total Points Facts

• Each of Ohio’s last six road games have gone UNDER the total points line.
• Four of Syracuse’s last five games at JMA Wireless Dome have gone UNDER the total points line.

Matchup/League Facts

• Ohio ranked T12th among FBS teams for Q3 win percentage last season (.615).
• Ohio was one of only 13 FBS teams to win 3+ games when trailing at HT last season.

Ohio vs Syracuse Prediction

I’ll stick with Syracuse. There are plenty of reasons to be (relatively) high on the Orange in 2024, even with the fresh coaching staff. Syracuse wrangled their first top-40 recruiting class since 2001 in the offseason and brought in a pretty good crop of transfers along with it. Former Ohio State QB Kyle McCord headlines that transfer class, and if his O-line can keep him upright good things will happen in the air.

Syracuse should also have a decent defense built around a very good secondary. If the Orange can keep the pass heavy teams on the schedule in check it’ll go a long way in getting back to a bowl game. Syracuse should kick things off well in this opener versus a rebuilding Ohio team.