Syracuse Stuns No. 19 SMU With 17 Seconds Left
There were 17 seconds left on the JMA Wireless Dome clock when Steve Angeli found tight end Noah Meyers from 2 yards out to seal Syracuse's 30-27 win over No. 19 SMU. The score capped an 11-play drive on an afternoon when the Orange offense had spent most of its time stalling on third down. For Syracuse (4-4, 2-4 ACC), it was a first win over a ranked opponent since Nov. 30, 2024. For SMU (6-2, 4-2), it is a costly loss in the ACC title race.
The game kicked off at noon Eastern (9 a.m. in Vancouver, 5 p.m. in France) on ESPN2, and it was the tightest of the four noon games involving a Top 25 team, the only one decided in the final minute. Notre Dame eventually pulled away from Navy (35-13) in Foxborough, Texas Tech came back to beat Arizona (34-26) and Iowa routed Wisconsin (30-0).
A first half controlled by the Orange
Syracuse set the tone early. Early in the first quarter, Angeli kept the ball and ran 26 yards for the game's first touchdown. SMU answered in the first quarter with a Kevin Jennings touchdown pass to Jalen Hale and a field goal, leading 10-7 after 15 minutes.
The second quarter belonged to Syracuse. Ahmad Miller converted a fourth down with a 1-yard plunge into the end zone, and kicker Tripp Woody added two field goals. At halftime, Syracuse led 20-10 and had contained a Mustangs offense averaging close to 470 yards per game.
Fran Brown's game plan, in his third season in charge, leaned on the run and on aggressiveness. Syracuse converted all three of its fourth-down attempts, which offset a 4-for-17 day on third down against an SMU defense that had allowed only 27.3% conversions before kickoff, the fourth-best rate in the country according to The Associated Press.
SMU's comeback and a painful safety
After halftime, Jennings pulled SMU back in. The Mustangs quarterback, nearly flawless on the day (29 of 36 for 351 yards and two touchdowns), hit Yamir Knight to cut the gap to 20-17 by the end of the third quarter. Knight finished with six catches for 80 yards.
The turning point came with about 12 minutes left. Pinned in his own end zone, Angeli was flagged for intentional grounding, throwing the ball away with no receiver nearby to avoid a sack. A grounding penalty in the end zone is a safety: two points for SMU, 20-19, and the ball back to the Mustangs.
SMU made it count. Kendrick Raphael finished the next drive with a 14-yard run and then ran in the two-point conversion himself, putting the visitors up 27-20 with nine minutes to go. Raphael finished with 51 rushing yards and five catches for 33 yards. Syracuse answered with Woody's third field goal with 5:26 left, cutting it to 27-23 and staying within a touchdown.
Eleven plays, 68 yards, 17 seconds
The Orange took over at their own 32 with 3:36 remaining. Angeli, who finished 21 of 34 for 200 yards, moved his team 11 plays before finishing with a short throw to Meyers. The tight end, who arrived in January from Western Kentucky, was scoring his first touchdown for Syracuse. Receiver Umari Hatcher was Angeli's most reliable target with six catches for 65 yards.
The moment carried weight for Angeli. A former backup at Notre Dame, the New Jersey native saw his first season at Syracuse end in Week 4 of 2025 with a torn Achilles tendon against Clemson. Clemson happens to be the Orange's next opponent, on Nov. 7 at home.
SMU finished with 421 total yards, below its season average, and scored nine points fewer than its usual output. Syracuse's defense gave ground through the air, but it held where it mattered.
What it means
For Syracuse, the momentum has flipped. A week after an overtime win at North Carolina (31-30), the Orange have won two straight and are back to .500. With four games left, bowl eligibility, which requires six wins and looked out of reach two weeks ago, is a realistic goal again. The schedule stays demanding, starting with Clemson's visit.
For SMU, the bill is steeper. A second conference loss seriously complicates the path to the ACC championship game, with No. 1 Miami unbeaten heading into its Saturday night trip to North Carolina. For a team with College Football Playoff hopes, the margin for error has vanished: SMU likely needs to win out and hope for help. According to the AP, the Mustangs could even drop out of the Top 25 on Sunday. Friday's home game against Virginia Tech comes quickly for Rhett Lashlee's team, which earned a controlled win over Virginia in October behind an already sharp Jennings.
The takeaway is harsh for SMU: its quarterback played at a contender's level, but a defense unable to stop Syracuse's short game on decisive downs and one final drive conceded were enough. In an ACC where the gap between the top and the middle of the standings shrinks every week, Syracuse just showed that an autumn Saturday is not won on paper.
