Syracuse football may not be an AP Top 25 team this week, but the Orange can still play spoiler and make their case to return to the rankings with a win over Miami.

Miami (10-1), which travels to the Dome for a Saturday matchup with Syracuse, is back up to No. 8 in the AP Top 25, having dropped out of the Top 10 two weekends ago after a loss to Georgia Tech. The Hurricanes need only beat the Orange to reach the Atlantic Coast Conference championship game against No. 9 SMU; should Syracuse win at home Saturday, though, Clemson will reach the ACC title game and not the Hurricanes.

With a 31-24 home win over UConn this weekend, the Orange improved to 8-3 for their first eight-win regular season since 2018, and third since 2000. Quarterback Kyle McCord, who broke Syracuse’s all-time record for single-season passing yards with 4:12 remaining in the first half against Connecticut, faces off against Miami’s Cameron Ward in Syracuse’s final game of the regular season. They are the two leading passers in FBS and sit atop the ACC in total offense.

The Orange spread the ball around in the win: Eight receivers caught passes, with three recording more than 100 yards each. Wide receivers Darrell Gill Jr. (177 yards) and Jackson Meeks (110) and tight end Oronde Gadsden (103 and a touchdown) combined for 390 receiving yards.

Syracuse and Miami haven't met since 2017; the Hurricanes claimed a 27-19 win in that meeting. Syracuse is 7-15 all time against Miami, having dropped each of the last five meetings. The Orange's last win over the 'Canes came in 1998.