Rickie Collins transferred from Brian Kelly’s LSU Tigers in hopes of better opportunities at the Orange. Reason? Limited playing time led him to seek experiences elsewhere, and he landed at Fran Brown’s Syracuse. Did it work? Yeah. “I think he’s our quarterback,” Brown announced back during the Spring drills. Until the spring reps, Collins had everything going well for him. Opportunities that escaped him at the Tigers’ roster, found found their way to the Orange. He was pegged to be the starting quarterback. Head coach Fran Brown himself was optimistic about that possibility. “He seems to be moving into (being) the leader of our football team. I think the players are behind him, everyone’s behind him. So, it seems like he’s going to be our quarterback,” he said back in April. But the fall camp saw a major shock.

Around that same time, when Collins had made his mark, the spring portal saw Steve Angeli enter the Orange, and thus, what Collins saw a major moment battling it out against veteran QB Michael Johnson Jr., redshirt freshman Jakhari Williams, and true freshman Luke Carney, once again turned back to a duel, but this time, starring Collins and Angeli. Preseason saw Notre Dame transfer Steve Angeli rise up and steal the QB1 spot. So, what it came to be was a battle of the transfer

“Notre Dame transfer Steve Angeli has won the starting job at Syracuse, per ESPN sources,” Pete Thamel tweeted. Yeah, a shocker to the LSU-transfer, but now the question is, with the starting quarterback spot slipping out of his hands, can he transfer again? Right now, when the 2025 season is just around the corner? Doesn’t seem so. He entered the winter portal last December to enter Fran Brown’s nest. Now, the spring drills promised him the QB1 spot, but he was edged out by Angeli. Following two seasons with the Tigers, he redshirted his first year. He now has three years of eligibility intact, but given that he is no longer the QB1 for Syracuse, will his potential year be wasted?

At this point, Collins’ options are limited. In clear terms, next to none. He has to wait behind Steve Angeli. If he wants to transfer out of Orange for some QB1 time, that can’t happen before the Winter portal opens in December.

During his time with Brian Kelly’s program, he played a total of four games over two seasons, going 7-7 on passing attempts for 38 yards and rushing for another 37 yards on 7 carries, taking detailed notes behind former Tigers QB Jayden Daniels as well as the Garrett Nussmeier, before making his way to the JMA Dome. Collins knew he was not promised everything and had to earn his spot. “(Brown) made it very clear that I was coming here to compete,” Collins said. “I wasn’t promised anything. I had to come in and work, just how everyone is working.” During the spring reps, he earned Brown’s nod. The Orange’s second spring practice saw the LSU transfer make some impressive individual drills with quarterback coach Nunzio Campanile

How Rickie Collins fell behind?

Before answering that question, let’s talk about what exactly Fran Brown was looking in his quarterback. “Leadership. Are they living D.A.R.T. when they are not around us? Do they embody that, is that their way of life? For me, that’s just what I’m looking for in a quarterback, a natural leader”. D.A.R.T? It expands to detailed, accountable, relentless, and tough, one of his philosophies that makes sure the QB is absorbed in the team’s culture and the playbook.

So, did Rickie Collins fit in that mould? Back in April, Brown was asked about what made Rickie Collins a potential quarterback for the Orange. His response? Rickie got the playbook right and fast. “We felt as though, if it was even, that he had to get it, because he hadn’t had the opportunity of knowing everything,” said Brown. Yeah, it seemed the scales had been in Collins’ favour all that while, so, what changed?

It was the experience factor. Although Collins proved his mettle during the spring reps, Angeli simply had more experience in the competition. He played in the Orange Bowl last season against Penn State, where he threw 44 yards and completed six passes.  Angeli also boasts an impressive record at the Irish. In 21 games, he completed 58 of 80 of his passes for 772 yards, 10 touchdowns, with just one interception in three seasons with the Fighting Irish before entering the spring portal. It was a close competition between both players, but as Brown revealed, “It’s always about the leadership first.” So, what followed was a close call of 51% to 49%, Angeli to Collins, respectively.

Syracuse will kick off its season against the Tennessee Vols on Aug. 30.