Syracuse Orange (2-2) vs. Virginia Cavaliers (3-2)
October 10, 2026 7:30 pm EDT
The Line: Virginia Cavaliers -8.5; Over/Under: 50.5
(Get latest betting odds)
The Syracuse Orange and the Virginia Cavaliers meet Saturday in college football action from Scott Stadium at the University of Virginia. Here’s a Virginia vs Syracuse prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best Virginia vs Syracuse pick.
Syracuse Orange Betting Preview
Syracuse has only completed four games so far this year, with some pretty mixed results. The opener was a nice blowout win for the Orange as they dispatched New Hampshire 66-3. Syracuse would lose the next pair however. First came a 21-18 loss to California, then a 27-13 loss at the hands of Pittsburgh for a 1-2 record over the first three games of the year.
Last weekend versus UConn, the Orange were looking good early on and had a 27-7 lead in the second quarter. Syracuse let UConn back into it following the break though, and needed overtime to secure a 42-41 victory in the end. QB Amari Odom had a 27-of-37 line for 335 yards, five scores and two picks. Tylik Hill carried 28 times for 140 yards as the top rusher.
Virginia Cavaliers Betting Preview
Over on the Virginia side, they had much better results in their first handful of games. The Cavaliers were able to beat NC State 34-8 in the opener and Norfolk State 59-3 in game two. Virginia dropped their first game versus West Virginia on September 19, but then bounced back with a nice win over Delaware by a score of 42-3 to open the season at 3-1 over four games.
Matched up against Florida State last weekend the Cavs jumped out to an early lead in the first quarter but then gave up three unanswered scores for a 17-7 deficit. Things didn’t get any better after the break and Virginia ended up with a loss 38-7. Beau Pribula had a 14-of-32 day for 168 yards and a score. Jekail Middlebrook carried 10 times for 65 yards in the defeat.
Syracuse Orange @ Virginia Cavaliers Betting Trends: Week 6
Virginia Cavaliers Player Prop Facts
- Heading into Week 6, Brandyn Hillman ranks T2nd amongst FBS players for interceptions (3) this season.
Syracuse Orange Player Prop Facts
- Heading into Week 6, Umari Hatcher ranks T11th amongst FBS players for receiving touchdowns (5) this season.
Matchup/League Facts
- Virginia ranks T2nd among FBS teams for sacks this season (20.0).
- Virginia ranks T4th among FBS teams for average point differential in first quarters this season (+10.4).
- Syracuse ranks 5th among FBS teams for Q2 points per game this season (16.8).
- Syracuse ranks 10th among FBS teams for time of possession per game this season (33:51).
Virginia vs Syracuse Prediction
I’ll go with Virginia, even following the flat effort in the road loss versus Florida State last weekend. In that defeat the Cavs went just 3-of-15 on third downs and gained only 205 yards on offense. The defense gave up 464 yards to the Seminoles, including 281 rush yards and 22 first downs. It was the first time this year that Virginia had failed to score at least 27 points.
As for Syracuse, they’re coming off a gritty win over UConn but it sure wasn’t pretty. The Orange bagged a nice offensive day with 509 yards, 29 first downs and 10-of-17 on third-down tries. The defense gave up 499 yards with 28 first downs on the other side, but did recover two fumbles and held the Huskies to just 3-of-11 on third downs. Virginia really needs to bounce back well for this one but I think they can do it.
