The scoreboard doesn’t accurately paint the picture of how well-fought the 2024 Holiday Bowl was. While the Syracuse Orange won comfortably 52-35 over the Washington State Cougars, the game was a war until about the last 10 minutes of gametime.

Syracuse Football is looking to finish the season with ten wins for the first time since 2018 and third time since 2001 when they face Washington State in the H

Yet, WSU plays into the postseason and will face No. 22 Syracuse (9-3) in the Holiday Bowl tonight. Kickoff is set for 5 p.m. on Fox 28 from Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego. The Orange finished on a three-game win streak and placed fourth in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

The Cougars are big underdogs after losing many of their top players and coaches, but there are reasons why they might pull off a big upset against Syracuse.

SAN DIEGO - The Washington State Cougars will face the Syracuse Orange on Friday in the Holiday Bowl. Washington State enters the Holiday Bowl with an 8-4 record, the most wins since 2018 and is playing in its eighth bowl in the last nine full seasons.

Orange QB Kyle McCord passes for over 450 yards and WSU WR Kyle Williams sets Holiday Bowl record with 172 receiving yards

Washington State will face Syracuse Friday in the Holiday Bowl at Snapdragon Stadium without its coach, offensive coordinator, defensive coordinator, two position coaches, quarterback and several other key players.

WSU (8-4) faces No. 21 Syracuse (9-3) in the DirecTV Holiday Bowl at 5 p.m. today (FOX) at Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego. The Cougar football team that runs into Snapdragon Stadium today will look dramatically different than the one that beat San Diego State in the same stadium in October and lost to lowly Wyoming 15-14 on Nov. 30 at Gesa Field.

It sounds like a cliche, but the Washington State Cougars gave a valiant effort on Friday night in a Holiday Bowl loss to the Syracuse Orange. Starting in place