Syracuse ranked No. 20 in 1st College Football Playoff poll

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After falling to No. 22 in the AP Poll on Sunday following its 41-24 loss to unranked Notre Dame, ESPN’s College Football Playoff ranked Syracuse 20th in its first edition.

The Orange remained ranked for the fourth consecutive week despite losing two straight games.

Syracuse clinched bowl game eligibility for the first time since 2018 after defeating then-No. 14 NC State. Despite suffering its biggest loss of the season to Notre Dame, Syracuse still remains ranked following Wake Forest’s 48-21 loss to Louisville. The Demon Deacons dropped to No. 21 as a result.

SU is the third-highest ranked team in the Atlantic Coast Conference in the CFP rankings behind No. 4 Clemson and No. 17 North Carolina, who beat Syracuse’s next opponent, Pittsburgh, 42-24 last week.

If the Orange lost to the unranked Panthers on Saturday, Syracuse would likely lose its ranking in all recognized polls and would give the Orange its fourth straight season with a three-game losing streak. Kickoff is set for 3:30pm at Acrisure Stadium.