Syracuse Confident In New Starting Quarterback

Syracuse has announced that Notre Dame transfer Steve Angeli will be the starting quarterback. He will make his debut for the Orange in the season opener against the No. 24 Tennessee Volunteers in Atlanta. The redshirt junior, Angeli, won the competition with LSU transfer Rickie Collins. Both quarterbacks played well during camp and were informed of the decision on Monday. Collins was originally named the starter in April. A battle for the job started after Angeli transferred later in the month. 

Syracuse Chooses QB1

Angeli played in 21 games at Notre Dame, including a start in the blowout victory against Oregon State in the 2023 Sun Bowl. His greatest moment was orchestrating a scoring drive for the Fighting Irish in the College Football Playoff semifinal against Penn State last season, which included completing 6-of-7 throws. 

Coach Fran Brown said, “That was a big drive for that program.” In his first season as the head coach of the Orange, he led them to a 10-3 record and finished as the top team nationally in passing offense. Angeli is now the successor to Kyle McCord, who set ACC and school single-season passing records with 4,770 yards. 

Although Angeli transferred after spring practice, he has done a great job of learning the offense. He will face the new Tennessee Quarterback, Joey Aguilar, who recently won the job after transferring after spring practice. He was at UCLA for one semester after starting for two years at Appalachian State. Nico Iamaleava, who was the starter at Tennessee in 2024, transferred to UCLA in the spring.  If he is still the starter on Nov. 22, Angeli would go up against his former team this season as Syracuse will visit Notre Dame. 

Tough Decision For Coach Fran Brown

“It was extremely hard,” Brown said. “I was up for a long time just trying to figure this out…A lot of the guys gravitated towards him. He makes his business to make personal relationships with everyone.”

It seems that it was a very close race, and Brown spoke with Angeli and Collins at the same time, although he didn’t provide specifics on how he informed the quarterbacks. Brown’s decision came after the team’s second scrimmage of training camp. He did state that Angeli’s experience at Notre Dame played a role in the final decision. Collins had 72 fewer pass attempts while at LSU. 

Collins has now lost his starting job after earning it at the end of spring practice. Brown’s focus is now on keeping himself ready in case he is needed because that moment can arrive at any time. Brown said, “Rickie’s all about helping us win.” 

Time To Play Ball

Syracuse has their QB1 and QB2 set. Now they can focus on preparing for the start of the season. With the transfers and the success of last season, the goal is definitely to make it into the College Football Playoff. Brown said, “I’m happy that our team knows who’s the leader of the football team and who they get to follow.”