Photo by: Michael J. Okoniewski
Babers Previews Season Opener
8/29/2016 4:03:00 PM | Football
127th Orange football season kicks off Friday versus Colgate
SYRACUSE, N.Y. – It is officially game week! The Syracuse University football team begins the 2016 season on Friday, Sept. 2 when it hosts in-state foe Colgate. The game is scheduled for 7 p.m. at the Carrier Dome and it will be broadcast on ACC Network Extra.
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"I'm really looking forward to seeing what's going to happen," head coach Dino Babers said at his weekly news conference Monday. "We've never played a game together. It's like the first time you take your family out to a family reunion. You think they're going to act really good, but you're not quite sure until you get there. I have high hopes for what's going to happen, but we're just going to have to wait and see."
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Colgate is coming off one of its best seasons in recent years. The Raiders posted a perfect 6-0 record in Patriot League play and tallied a 9-5 overall mark in 2015 en route to two playoff victories and a berth in the NCAA Division I FCS quarterfinals.
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"They have a very, very experienced football team coming back," Babers said. "Total, you're talking about 17-18 starters out of 22. It's probably one of the most experienced teams we're going to play all year."
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The cupboard for Babers is not bare in his first season at the helm of the Orange program. Syracuse returns a wealth of experienced players, Including 19 starters (8 offense, 9 defense, and 2 specialists). Junior linebacker Zaire Franklin, the club's leading tackler from a year ago, has started a team-best 15 straight contests. The Orange are also one of three ACC teams (along with Florida State and Louisville) that return at least 90 percent of their rushing yardage and 85 percent of their receiving yardage from last season.
Syracuse has won the last 15 meetings against the Raiders, including all four contested in the Carrier Dome. In addition, the Orange owns a 32-game winning streak against current FCS members, a streak that predates the 1978 separation of major college football into two divisions.
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Season and single-game tickets for Syracuse football are available online, by phone (888-DOMETIX), at Destiny USA kiosks and at the Carrier Dome Box Office (Gate B). Tickets start at $20 for non-conference games against Colgate and USF, $25 for the Louisville and NC State games, and $30 for the Virginia Tech and Florida State contests.
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For complete coverage of Syracuse and Syracuse football, follow us on Facebook (Syracuse Orange & Syracuse Football), Twitter (@Cuse & @CuseFootball), Instagram (@Cusepics, @CuseFootball) and watch exclusive video content on Cuse TV.
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"I'm really looking forward to seeing what's going to happen," head coach Dino Babers said at his weekly news conference Monday. "We've never played a game together. It's like the first time you take your family out to a family reunion. You think they're going to act really good, but you're not quite sure until you get there. I have high hopes for what's going to happen, but we're just going to have to wait and see."
Â
Colgate is coming off one of its best seasons in recent years. The Raiders posted a perfect 6-0 record in Patriot League play and tallied a 9-5 overall mark in 2015 en route to two playoff victories and a berth in the NCAA Division I FCS quarterfinals.
Â
"They have a very, very experienced football team coming back," Babers said. "Total, you're talking about 17-18 starters out of 22. It's probably one of the most experienced teams we're going to play all year."
Â
The cupboard for Babers is not bare in his first season at the helm of the Orange program. Syracuse returns a wealth of experienced players, Including 19 starters (8 offense, 9 defense, and 2 specialists). Junior linebacker Zaire Franklin, the club's leading tackler from a year ago, has started a team-best 15 straight contests. The Orange are also one of three ACC teams (along with Florida State and Louisville) that return at least 90 percent of their rushing yardage and 85 percent of their receiving yardage from last season.
Syracuse has won the last 15 meetings against the Raiders, including all four contested in the Carrier Dome. In addition, the Orange owns a 32-game winning streak against current FCS members, a streak that predates the 1978 separation of major college football into two divisions.
Â
Season and single-game tickets for Syracuse football are available online, by phone (888-DOMETIX), at Destiny USA kiosks and at the Carrier Dome Box Office (Gate B). Tickets start at $20 for non-conference games against Colgate and USF, $25 for the Louisville and NC State games, and $30 for the Virginia Tech and Florida State contests.
Â
For complete coverage of Syracuse and Syracuse football, follow us on Facebook (Syracuse Orange & Syracuse Football), Twitter (@Cuse & @CuseFootball), Instagram (@Cusepics, @CuseFootball) and watch exclusive video content on Cuse TV.
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Players Mentioned
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