Syracuse football 2025 opponent preview: Colgate Raiders

Everyone’s favorite toothpaste-branded school.

With a new Syracuse Orange football season looming, we’re pleased to say that a fan favorite TNIAAM series is making its return once again to help you get ready for the new year.

Coming off its home-season opener versus UConn, Syracuse will return to the JMA Wireless Dome to face a familiar opponent from the Patriot League, known mainly for its #BRAND name.

The Orange’s first nighttime game will be against the Colgate Raiders, who ‘Cuse has played plenty of times against historically. Syracuse has not lost to the Raiders since Harry Truman was in office, but, weirder things have happened versus the Raiders before (*cough* *cough* men’s basketball in 2022 and 2023 *cough*).

Will Syracuse keep its years-long winning streak versus Colgate going, or does #TeamToothpaste pull off an early-season shocker?

Here’s your breakdown of Syracuse’s matchup versus the Raiders:

What to know about the UConn Huskies

School: Colgate University (Hamilton, NY)

Nickname: Raiders

Mascots: Raider

#BRAND Slogans: #GoGate

Alternate #BRAND Slogans: #BestToothpasteSchool, #HamiltonIsHome, #GreaterRaider

Conference: Patriot League

History vs. Syracuse: The Orange are 32-31-5 all-time versus Colgate dating back to November 1891. Colgate won its first three games ever versus Syracuse and had a run of 10 straight victories from the late-1920s to 1937. Since 1951, Syracuse has won 17 games, all of which have been at home. The Orange played the Raiders most recently in 2023 (a 65-0 torching by ‘Cuse). This will be the fourth matchup of the all-time series this century.

Photo by Jerome Davis/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Coach: Curt Fitzpatrick will look to usher in a new era for Colgate football, who was previously led by Stan Dakosty. He’s coming off a four-year run where he finished 45-5 overall with Division III Cortland and guided the team to the 2023 D3 National Championship. Fitzpatrick is a pure Upstate New Yorker in his football resume. After a long run playing quarterback for St. John Fisher University, he started off as QB/WR coach for Fulton High School. He then returned to John Fisher before heading off to be Utica’s offensive coordinator. He’s been a head coach since 2013, first with Morrisville, then Cortland and now Colgate.

2024 Record: 2-10 (1-5)

What happened last season: It was a very down year for Colgate, who finished with just two wins in 2024 after a 6-5 campaign in 2023. It was also the team’s worst record under Dakosty. This past season included an 0-7 record on the road, just one conference win and a five-game losing streak to end the year. Colgate did manage to pick up an in-state win over Cornell and a 10-point win over Georgetown (because, of course). Losses were against Maine, Villanova, Akron, UPenn, Holy Cross, Merrimack, Fordham, Lafayette, Lehigh and Bucknell.

What happened during the offseason: Fitzpatrick notably worked on filling out his staff for the program going forward. Notable players that will be new additions to the team include former Oklahoma linebacker Connor Phelps, linebacker Declan Norton (a third-team All-Ohio selection) and defensive back Hal Niendorff (a Tennessee All-State selection).

2025 season projections: Colgate will open its season at home versus Monmouth. Other home games are against Fordham, Richmond, Merrimack, Lehigh and Bucknell. The Raiders will play ‘Cuse, Villanova, Cornell, Georgetown, Holy Cross and Lafayette all on the road.

Game Date: Friday, September 12

Location: JMA Wireless Dome

Odds of Orange Victory: 99.9%

Odds of “marquee game” potential: 2%

Very Early Outlook vs. Syracuse: Ideally, this is the game where Syracuse can get that dominant win early, get the younger guys some snaps in the second half and rest all the key players at some point during the matchup before the Orange’s schedule really beefs up.

Fitzpatrick is bringing a winning reputation and likely understanding of just how good Syracuse is, so he definitely will have his guys ready. That being said, this is Colgate’s only P4 opponent on the calendar and it’s hard to see a legit path where the Raiders can steal this one unless the Orange turn the ball over a million times (which again, you never know these days).