1989 Syracuse Orangemen football team

The 1989 Syracuse Orangemen football team represented Syracuse University an independent during the 1989 NCAA Division I-A football season. Led by ninth-year head coach Dick MacPherson, the Orangemen compiled a record of 8–4. Syracuse was invited to the Peach Bowl, where the Orangemen defeated Georgia. The team also played its final regular season game in Tokyo, at the Coca-Cola Classic against Louisville.^[2] Syracuse played home games at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, New York.

1989 Syracuse Orangemen football
Peach Bowl champion
Peach Bowl, W 19–18 vs. Georgia
Conference	Independent
Record	8–4
Head coach	Dick MacPherson (9th season)
Offensive coordinator	George DeLeone (3rd season)
Captains	Blake Bednarz Dan Bucey Rob Burnett Michael Owens Terry Wooden[1]
Home stadium	Carrier Dome
Seasons ← 1988 1990 →

1989 Major eastern college football independents records

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 15 Penn State $	6	–	0	–	0			8	–	3	–	1
No. 17 Pittsburgh	4	–	1	–	1			8	–	3	–	1
No. 21 West Virginia	3	–	1	–	1			8	–	3	–	1
Syracuse	3	–	3	–	0			8	–	4	–	0
Temple	1	–	4	–	0			1	–	10	–	0
Rutgers	1	–	5	–	0			2	–	7	–	2
Boston College	1	–	5	–	0			2	–	9	–	0
$ – Lambert Trophy Winner Rankings from AP Poll

1989 NCAA Division I-A independents football records

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 1 Miami (FL)			–					11	–	1	–	0
No. 2 Notre Dame			–					12	–	1	–	0
No. 3 Florida State			–					10	–	2	–	0
Northern Illinois			–					9	–	2	–	0
No. 15 Penn State			–					8	–	3	–	1
No. 17 Pittsburgh			–					8	–	3	–	1
No. 21 West Virginia			–					8	–	3	–	1
Syracuse			–					8	–	4	–	0
Southwestern Louisiana			–					7	–	4	–	0
Akron			–					6	–	4	–	1
South Carolina			–					6	–	4	–	1
Virginia Tech			–					6	–	4	–	1
Louisiana Tech			–					5	–	4	–	1
Army			–					6	–	5	–	0
Louisville			–					6	–	5	–	0
East Carolina			–					5	–	5	–	1
Tulsa			–					6	–	6	–	0
Southern Miss			–					5	–	6	–	0
Tulane			–					4	–	8	–	0
Navy			–					3	–	8	–	0
Rutgers			–					2	–	7	–	2
Boston College			–					2	–	9	–	0
Memphis State			–					2	–	9	–	0
Cincinnati			–					1	–	9	–	1
Temple			–					1	–	10	–	0
Rankings from AP Poll

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 9	at Temple	No. 14	Veterans Stadium Philadelphia, PA		W 43–3	20,150	[3]
September 16	Army	No. 11	Carrier Dome Syracuse, NY		W 10–7	48,331	[4]
September 23	at No. 13 Pittsburgh	No. 10	Pitt Stadium Pittsburgh, PA (rivalry)		L 23–30	45,762	[5]
October 7	No. 22 Florida State	No. 17	Carrier Dome Syracuse, NY		L 10–41	49,832	[6]
October 14	No. 23 Penn State		Carrier Dome Syracuse, NY (rivalry)		L 12–34	49,876	[7]
October 21	at Rutgers		Rutgers Stadium Piscataway, NJ		W 49–28	29,276	[8]
October 28	East Carolina		Carrier Dome Syracuse, NY		W 18–16	48,731	[9]
November 4	Boston College		Carrier Dome Syracuse, NY		W 23–11	49,781	[10]
November 11	at Navy		Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium Annapolis, MD		W 38–17	29,032	[11]
November 23	No. 17 West Virginia		Carrier Dome Syracuse, NY (rivalry)		L 17–24	46,757	[12]
December 4	vs. Louisville		Tokyo Dome Tokyo, Japan (Coca-Cola Classic)		W 24–13	50,000	[2]
December 30	vs. Georgia		Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium Atlanta, GA (Peach Bowl)	ABC	W 19–18	44,911	[13]
Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

^[14][1]