At the beginning of the season, there was excitement in the college football futures market for the North Carolina Tar Heels and Syracuse Orange.
Of course, the hiring of Bill Belichick was seen as the moment UNC football would find college football manna.
Meanwhile, Syracuse was coming off a 10-3 season under rookie head coach Fran Brown. Thus, optimism abounded at Chapel Hill and Syracuse.
Instead, the Tar Heels and the Orange are the walking zombies of lost seasons with one long month to go.
On Friday night, Syracuse will host North Carolina in a matchup that only gamblers can appreciate.
Despite the poor seasons of both teams, this game will draw strong betting activity. The reasons include interest in Bill Belichick and the limited Friday night college football card.
Get the latest Week 10 news, check out the current betting lines for the games, and don’t miss Friday Night College Football action, all with the best odds at BookMaker!
North Carolina at Syracuse Odds at Bookmaker
The JMA Wireless Dome in Syracuse, NY, will host the matchup between the North Carolina Tar Heels and the Syracuse Orange on Friday, October 31, 2025. The kickoff time is 7:30 p.m. ET, with television coverage on ESPN.
Oddsmakers opened with Syracuse as a 1.5-point favorite and North Carolina as a 1-point dog.
Syracuse is a -120 moneyline favorite against North Carolina, which is a +100 moneyline dog.
Syracuse and North Carolina opened with a total of 48.5.
North Carolina Tar Heels
Last game, the North Carolina Tar Heels lost 17-16 in overtime against the Virginia Cavaliers as 11.5-point home dogs. The game went under the total of 51.5.
North Carolina is 2-5 straight up, 4-3 against the spread, and 2-5 over/under the total.
North Carolina ranks 134th for total offense, 121st for passing, 124th for rushing, 123rd for scoring, and 64th for fewest turnovers committed.
In comparison, North Carolina ranks 61st for total defense, 97th vs. the pass, 35th vs rush, 76th for fewest points allowed, and 89th for takeaways.
Syracuse Orange
Last game, the Syracuse Orange lost 41-18 against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets as 17-point road dogs. The game went over the total of 52.5.
Syracuse is 3-5 straight up, 3-4-1 against the spread, and 4-4 over/under the total.
Overall, Syracuse ranks 101st for total offense, 40th for passing, 130th for rushing, 85th for scoring, and 128th for fewest turnovers committed.
Syracuse ranks 73rd for total defense, 93rd vs. the pass, 53rd vs rush, 115th for fewest points allowed, and 72nd for takeaways.
North Carolina at Syracuse Betting Trends
In the series between North Carolina and Syracuse, the Tar Heels have covered the last three meetings.
Also, two of those three games went under the total.
Specifically at Syracuse, North Carolina got the cash in its two most recent visits.
Both games went over the total.
Syracuse has been in the red at home. The Orange paid out in only three of its previous nine home games.
Syracuse went under the total in six of its last ten home matchups.
North Carolina is a weak betting value on the road. To illuminate, North Carolina covered only four of its most recent 11 away matchups.
Only one of the last eight Tar Heel road games went under the total.
North Carolina at Syracuse Best Bets
Syracuse has annoyed gamblers, though not to the extent that North Carolina has.
Still, North Carolina and Belichick was touted far more, thus there is much more negative intensity against the Tar Heels.
Neither North Carolina nor Syracuse has any credibility with the betting public. Both teams were touted for greatness, only to flop miserably.
In particular, gamblers are feeling burned badly by Bill Belichick.
Due to the terrible North Carolina season, they are not a highly regarded brand on the college football board.
In this situation, gamblers have two unappealing choices.
Of those two options, North Carolina makes the most sense, getting the road team price.
Main Pick: North Carolina Tar Heels
Over/Under Pick: Under the Total
Player Prop Picks: Rickie Collins Under the Total Yards Total
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