The No. 22 Syracuse Orange (6-2, 3-1 ACC) visit the Pittsburgh Panthers (4-4, 1-3 ACC) Saturday at Acrisure Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. ET (ACC Network). Below, we analyze Tipico Sportsbook‘s lines around the Syracuse vs. Pittsburgh odds, and make our expert college football picks and predictions.
Rankings courtesy of the AFCA Coaches Poll powered by USA TODAY Sports.
Syracuse lost at home 41-24 to Notre Dame last Saturday, its 2nd-straight setback after starting the season 6-0. The 20th-ranked squad in the College Football Playoff rankings was crushed in the running game 246 yards to 61, leading to a 37:40 time of possession for the Fighting Irish. SU has coughed up 539 rushing yards in the last 2 weeks; the Orange allowed 293 in a 27-21 loss to No. 5 Clemson on Oct. 22.
The Panthers dropped a 42-24 decision Saturday at now-No. 15 North Carolina. Pitt led 24-21 heading into the 4th quarter, but could not hang on and lost for the 3rd time in its last 4 games. Junior RB Israel Abanikanda ran the ball 26 times for 127 yards and he has tallied 576 yards and 10 TDs in his last 3 games.
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Syracuse at Pittsburgh odds
Provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated Thursday at 8:21 a.m. ET.
- Moneyline: Syracuse +155 (bet $100 to win $155) | Pittsburgh -190 (bet $190 to win $100)
- Run line (RL)/Against the spread (ATS): Syracuse +3.5 (-110) | Pittsburgh -3.5 (-110)
- Over/Under (O/U): 48.0 (O: -110 | U: -110)
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Syracuse at Pittsburgh picks and predictions
Prediction
Syracuse 24, Pittsburgh 21
Moneyline
A tough slate for both sides continues, but the recent schedule has been especially tough for Syracuse. Last week SU was undone by some factors that indicate some bad luck more than bad play. The Orange were a combined 4-of-15 on 3rd and 4th downs, and they were hurt by multiple short-field drives. They also struggled on 3rd downs in their road loss at Clemson 2 weeks back.
This game against against the Panthers pits a solid SU offensive line against a solid UP defensive line. But look for Syracuse — a team that showed a lot of guts in the way it played in a tough road environment at Clemson — to have more success on 1st and 2nd downs and for havoc plays to be plentiful on both sides in a close exchange down to the wire.
A combined play — perhaps 25% on the ML and 75% ATS — on the Orange makes sense here. BACK SYRACUSE (+155).
Against the spread
The road team is 4-1-1 ATS in the last 6 series meetings.
TAKE SYRACUSE +3.5 (-110).
Over/Under
No room to quibble with this total. PASS.
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