It is obviously hard to stay upbeat when after a hard week's work of preparation the end goal of winning a football game is not met, but Fran Brown is doing his best swimming against the current tide of despair among Orang fans, as the program is nearing a school-record the 2026 squad wants absolutely no part of
Syracuse lost 12 straight Big East games at the nadir of the program's run this century under Greg Robinson during the first two of his disastrous four seasons between 2005-08. Now at 11 straight ACC defeats dating back to the Clemson road game September 20, 2025, and 12 straight losses against Power Four (Notre Dame 70-7) teams, Brown wants to avoid sharing unglamourous company.
As the tough '26 schedule continues with a road game Saturday night at rejuvenated North Carolina (7:30 p.m. ET / ACC Network), the Tar Heels are coming off a rivalry game slugfest defeating Duke 24-20 to improve to 4-2, 2-1 in Bill Belichick's second season.
Brown's relationship with Blair is taking shape
It takes time, with such small amounts of it available, for an athletic director that did not hire his/her football/basketball coaches at a major conference school to build their relationships.
At SU, AD Bryan Blair got busy early in his tenure with Gerry McNamara's hiring in March, and he's only been working with Brown for seven months. The two spent time together dissecting the Louisville loss late after its conclusion.
"It's pretty good, we speak every week, have lunch together," Brown said when asked about how the two are plotting a course to get the program out of the conference cellar. "I'm speaking with him, talking after the game. He knew it was a tough game, he is a good athletic director.
"(He) was like, 'come over and talk to me, are you alright, Fran? I am seeing the progress and things of that nature." (Which by the way, the comment "things of that nature" has turned into Coach Fran's pet phrase.)
The unquestioned leader of this year's team is...
According to the coach, it is the flamboyant freshman player who received an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty is last week's loss against the Cardinals for heaving the football into the west end zone lower deck after scoring his first collegiate touchdown.
That would be none other than WR Calvin Russell III, who seems to be making the leap from one game to next after his delayed entry onto the field several weeks back at Connecticut (Oct. 3). In three games, Russell has eight catches for 64 yards and the one score.
"In think Calvin Russell's the leader, he's a guy that wants to see everybody on the team do well just as if he were a coach," Brown said Monday, "If you saw when he scored, the entire team was excited about it because he is always happy about them, everyday, from the smallest things they do in practice."
Solving second half woes before facing Bill Belichick and the Tar Heels
SU had halftime leads at Connecticut snd Virginia, trailed by just five to Louisville, but could not put games away or complete fourth quarter comebacks in two of the three contests.
Brown is frustrated as anyone over game details that have been rehearsed in practice, especially by his top offensive targets, and halftime changes in strategy among his coaching staff.
"We need our playmakers to make more plays, our coaches to make more of the right calls, and myself to make the right (time management) calls," Brown explained. "It's an organizational thing, we all have to step up".
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