Will Nixon shows he can spark Syracuse’s backfield

The day before Syracuse’s home matchup with Colgate, Fran Brown announced that starting running back Yasin Willis would not play the following night due to injury.

The loss was a tough one for the Orange, but with it came an opportunity for veteran Will Nixon to take the reins for SU in the backfield. After backing up eventual NFL draft pick LeQuint Allen Jr. last season and being used sparingly throughout SU’s first two games of 2025, it was finally Nixon’s time to shine — and he made the most of it.

In his first start with Syracuse, his 12 carries for 66 yards and a touchdown helped the Orange continue to pad their lead throughout the night in a 66-24 blowout victory over the Raiders.

Nixon's advice for Hill

While Nixon welcomed the opportunity to take on the role of RB1, he remained realistic. He knew Colgate’s defense in all likelihood wouldn’t present too much of a challenge for SU’s dynamic offense. Because of this, Nixon said he went in with the expectation to be taken out in the second half once the contest eventually got out of hand.

Now in his fifth year, not much makes Nixon nervous anymore. The same can’t be said for some of his younger running back teammates, specifically freshman Tylik Hill.

“Tylik (Hill) actually asked me before the game, ‘Do you ever get nervous for the game or anything?’ I was like, ‘No, not really. I feel more excited than nervous.’ And he went out and did his thing,” Nixon said of Hill. “After the game I just told him I was proud of him. He had fun, and that’s all you can do in football, you know?”

A shaky start

Despite Nixon’s presence, Steve Angeli mostly punished the Raiders with his arm on SU’s opening drive. A team known for giving up chunk plays through the air up to that point, Colgate had no answers for Syracuse's signal caller out of the gate. A 26-yard strike to Justus Ross-Simmons nearly five minutes in started the Orange’s offense off on the right foot.

On the ensuing drive, Angeli opted to hand the ball off to Nixon on the first play following a clutch interception. After bursting forward for eight yards, a Colgate defender forced him into a fumble. Taking advantage of the hiccup, the Raiders jumped on the ball and cut the deficit to 7-3 just over two minutes later with a field goal.

“I just had to relax. It happened, and it was unlucky, but I just gotta work on my ball security. It’s football, you move on,” Nixon said of the fumble.

And that’s exactly what Nixon did. After another touchdown pass by Angeli — the second of what became five — Nixon extended the Orange’s edge up to three scores as he punched in their third touchdown via a two-yard rush early in the second quarter.

A true test against Clemson awaits

Just as Nixon anticipated, he was taken out in the third quarter. With SU ahead by 35 at that point and its victory all but assured, Brown gave the less experienced members of his backfield a chance to take some snaps.

While he wasn’t given the toughest test possible for his first start in a Syracuse uniform, Nixon showed he can ignite SU’s backfield no matter where he sits on the depth chart.

That will certainly be put to the test on Saturday against Clemson at Death Valley. While Clemson has stumbled to a 1-2 start and has fallen out of the top 25, they are still the same team that was voted in the preseason polls to capture the ACC title.

Brown hinted earlier in the week that Willis could be back in the lineup for Saturday. But even if he is not, Nixon has proven that he can handle the extra workload and excel in a starting job.

"It's just being ready to go whenever it's your time," Nixon said. "Clemson is a good team. So just play hard and do your job the best you can."

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