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The Syracuse football team was excellent on Saturday afternoon, rolling past FCS New Hampshire 66-3 at the JMA Wireless Dome in the season opener.

As noted by our own Tom Goslowski, this was the biggest home-opening win in JMA Wireless Dome history, and the second-biggest win ever for the program in a home opener.

Syracuse is out to a 1-0 start after last year's 3-9 record, fueling optimism about the season ahead. And while this win was nice, the Orange will face a much bigger test next Saturday when they host Cal in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) opener.

Fortunately for head coach Fran Brown, he'll have star defensive back Chris Peal available for that game. Peal was ejected for targeting in the third quarter, but because of a new rule change this year, he won't have to sit out the first half of next week's game.

Peal is one of the best defensive backs in the ACC and he's already drawing looks from NFL scouts ahead of the 2027 NFL Draft.

The senior from North Carolina has played 17 games for Syracuse and Georgia over three years. He had five tackles in the opener. After the game, Brown indicated that he didn't have a problem with the targeting call, though several fans and reporters felt it was egregious because Peal led with his shoulder, not his head.

Saturday's game against Cal is set for 3:30 p.m. ET.

More on the Week 1 win for the Orange

Quarterback Steve Angeli, who was playing his first game since last September after a torn Achilles ended his 2025 season, looked excellent in this one. He went 20-of-29 for 263 yards and three touchdowns, averaging 9.1 yards per completion. He did not throw any interceptions and played into the fourth quarter, despite SU being in full control.

Perhaps Brown wanted to knock the rust off of Angeli since he hadn't played a game in almost a calendar year.

He found Umari Hatcher for two touchdowns, as Hatcher had 147 yards receiving. He'll be a big part of the offense without Darrell Gill Jr. (transfer), Calvin Russell III (injury) and Justus Ross-Simmons (eligibility issues).

Defensively, the Orange recovered two fumbles, had five sacks, an interception and scored a touchdown.

New Hampshire had only 150 yards of total offense. It was the first game on the SU sidelines for new defensive coordinator Vince Kehres, formerly of Toledo.

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