CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

1988 Syracuse

10–⁠2, coached by Dick MacPherson, finished No. 13 in the AP poll.

Schedule and results

Syracuse in 1988, game by game: won vs. Temple 31–21; lost at Ohio State 9–26; won vs. Virginia Tech 35–0; won vs. Maryland 20–9; won vs. Rutgers 34–20; won at Penn State 24–10; won at East Carolina 38–14; won vs. Navy 49–21; won at Boston College 45–20; lost at No. 4 West Virginia 9–31; won vs. Pittsburgh 24–7; won vs. No. 16 LSU 23–10+35−22Won 31–21 vs. Temple+10TempleLost 9–26 at Ohio State-17Ohio StateWon 35–0 vs. Virginia Tech+35Virginia TechWon 20–9 vs. Maryland+11MarylandWon 34–20 vs. Rutgers+14RutgersWon 24–10 at Penn State+14Penn StateWon 38–14 at East Carolina+24East CarolinaWon 49–21 vs. Navy+28NavyWon 45–20 at Boston College+25Boston CollegeLost 9–31 at No. 4 West Virginia-22No. 4 West VirginiaWon 24–7 vs. Pittsburgh+17PittsburghWon 23–10 vs. No. 16 LSU+13No. 16 LSU
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below; orange marks an upset win.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 3vsTempleW 31–⁠2184%
Sep 10atOhio StateL 9–⁠2653%
Sep 24vsVirginia TechW 35–⁠082%
Oct 1vsMarylandW 20–⁠977%
Oct 8vsRutgersW 34–⁠2072%
Oct 15atPenn StateW 24–⁠1045%
Oct 22atEast CarolinaW 38–⁠1482%
Nov 5vsNavyW 49–⁠2191%
Nov 12atBoston CollegeW 45–⁠2077%
Nov 19at4West VirginiaL 9–⁠3142%
Dec 3vsPittsburghW 24–⁠772%
Jan 2Bowls & playoffvs16LSUHall of Fame BowlW 23–⁠1055%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat LSU 23–⁠10 in the Hall of Fame Bowl; No. 13 in the final AP poll.

In program history: The 2nd-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 135 on file).

AP poll, week by week

  1. Wk 9: 19
  2. Wk 10: 16
  3. Wk 11: 16
  4. Wk 12: 15
  5. Wk 13: 14
  6. Wk 14: 19
  7. Wk 15: 18
  8. Wk 16: 17
  9. Final: 13

Players on this team

Before 2004 our records hold honors and the draft; these are the players whose college years here, from their Wikipedia articles or their honors, include 1988.

Record
10–⁠2
Conference
5–⁠1 2nd in the Major eastern college football independents (Wikipedia)
AP final
No. 13 peak No. 13
Points
341–⁠189
Coach
Dick MacPherson
Elo
1734 +84 this season
SP+ rating
17.1 No. 17 of 102; offense No. 24, defense No. 18
SRS
16.1 No. 13 of 105 in Division I-A
Recruiting class
—
Offensive coordinator
George DeLeone
Captains
Daryl Johnston and Markus Paul

Drafted in 1989

The 1989 draft
Rd 2Daryl Johnston RBDallas Cowboys
Rd 3Robert Drummond RBPhiladelphia Eagles
Rd 4David Holmes DBMiami Dolphins
Rd 4Markus Paul DBChicago Bears