The Syracuse Orange pulled off a huge upset over the Clemson Tigers on Saturday, and head coach Fran Brown basically foreshadowed it earlier in the week.
The Orange beat Clemson 34-21 on Saturday at Clemson Memorial Stadium in Clemson, S.C. Syracuse controlled the game and looked very comfortable despite being a 17.5-point underdog during the week.
Brown had been asked about that point spread during the week, and his response basically foreshadowed what Saturday’s game turned into by comparing it to Terence Crawford’s recent upset of Canelo Alvarez to claim the super middleweight championship.
“I don’t care about what Vegas says. Vegas said Canelo was about to win. Crawford said different,” Brown said.
Fran Brown earlier in the week on being 17.5-pt underdogs vs. Clemson:
— Samantha Croston (@SamCroston1) September 20, 2025
"Vegas said Canelo [Álvarez] was about to win…[Terrence] Crawford said different. I've been the underdog my whole life." 🔥🔥🔥
SU has a 13-pt lead w/ less than 2 minutes to playpic.twitter.com/sBmcVarR60
Alvarez was initially a big favorite when the fight was announced, but Crawford wound up winning in a unanimous decision. Similarly, Syracuse overcame Clemson despite the Tigers being heavily favored.
Brown is now 13-4 since becoming Syracuse head coach last season. His methods are certainly unorthodox, but they are getting results.
