The Syracuse Orange have finalized their 2012 non-conference football schedule, the school announced this morning.
Syracuse opens the 2012 season at home on Sept. 1 against the Northwestern Wildcats of the Big Ten. Syracuse holds a 5-4 series lead over NU and have won five of the last six meetings.
The following week, Syracuse takes on the USC Trojans in New York’s College Classic at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ. The Orange are winless in three attempts against the Trojans. Last season, USC rolled to a 38-17 win in Los Angeles.
The Orange return to the Carrier Dome on Sept. 15 to host the Stony Brook Seawolves. The game will be the first ever between the two schools. Stony Brook is a member of the Big South Conference in the FCS.
On Sept. 22, Syracuse travels to face the Minnesota Golden Gophers. The two schools have met three times and Minnesota leads the series 2-1. In their last meeting in 2009, the Gophers beat the Orange 23-20 at the Carrier Dome.
Syracuse’s final non-conference game is at Missouri on Nov. 17. The Tigers will be playing their first season as a member of the SEC after leaving the Big 12. The contract between the two schools, which was announced this morning, is for one game only and does not include a return game at Syracuse.
With Syracuse announcing their non-conference schedule, it seems clear that the Big East is confident it will add an eighth member for the 2012 season. The most likely schools appears to be Temple.
Syracuse deputy athletics director Herman Frazier told Syracuse.com this morning that “The Big East has to assist us with that last conference game, whatever that is.” Frazier also expects the league “…to make an announcement sometime in the next seven to 10 days.”
Football Schedules:
Glad to see a late addition to BCS schools’ schedule not just be merely another FCS team, but 2 BCS teams vs. each other. Good on ya Syracuse & Mizzou!
Surprised that Missouri wouldn’t give them a return game.
Yeah me too. Wouldn’t think it’d be a big deal for the Orange to be a non-con road game in one of the next few years…
The SEC schedule is a one year only adjustment to handle the late addition of Texas A&M and Missouri. I doubt that Missouri can guarantee that date is available again. Maybe the two schools will work something out again when both conferences stabilize the part of the calendar that is reserved for conference games. Lot’s of odd things happened when the one year schedule cam out, like Georgia getting a very favorable change in their schedule.
But yes, really, good comments, compare this to Georgia playing the D-1 program with the worst record last november, and lots of other examples of mis-matches. Plus it will be interesting because Missouri had that North Carolina (ACC) bowl match up last year.
Also the Orangemen will get to play on new turf and a newly remodeled Missouri field. The only bad thing about it is happens so late in the year and it could be cold in central Missouri by Nov. 17th