Auburn at Syracuse preview: what's at stake in Week 8

Auburn (4-3) travels to No. 9 Syracuse (5-2) on Friday in a Week 8 C1 Nebraska high school football game with a ranked Syracuse team trying to protect its spot in the Hurrdat Sports coaches poll and wildcard points that count toward NSAA playoff qualifying and seeding on the line. Records are from NSAA's wildcard standings, pulled Oct. 12 at 10:42 p.m. This one matters because Auburn gets a shot at a ranked opponent.

Auburn is 4-3 in NSAA results. In its last three games with a final in our synced scores, newest first, Auburn lost to Boys Town 55-7, beat Milford 40-6 and lost to Lincoln Christian 27-8. Across its 7 games with verified finals, Auburn averages 22 points and allows 22.4.

Syracuse sits No. 9 in C1 in the latest Hurrdat Sports coaches poll (2026-10-11). Syracuse is 5-2 in NSAA results. Syracuse has won three straight in our synced finals. Most recently, it beat Milford 35-7, beat Lincoln Christian 21-14 and beat Nebraska City 46-0. Across its 7 games with verified finals, Syracuse averages 28.1 points and allows 19.6.

What's at stake

Auburn carries a 38.8571 NSAA wildcard points average, 14th of 30 teams in C1 by average; its path to the playoffs is a district title or an at-large spot (projection, not official). Syracuse carries a 41.2857 NSAA wildcard points average, 9th of 30 teams in C1 by average; its path to the playoffs is a district title or an at-large spot (projection, not official). In C1, the 6 district champions qualify automatically, and the 10 best averages among non-champions fill the rest of the 16-team field. Wildcard points decide who qualifies and how the field is seeded; see the Nebraska high school football wildcard standings and the playoff format.

Matchup to watch

The matchup to watch is Syracuse's defense, which has allowed 19.6 points per game, against an Auburn offense that scores 22. Both have played Ashland-Greenwood: Auburn lost to Ashland-Greenwood 35-14, and Syracuse lost to Ashland-Greenwood 41-7. Both have played Boys Town: Auburn lost to Boys Town 55-7, and Syracuse lost to Boys Town 40-7. Both have played Lincoln Christian: Auburn lost to Lincoln Christian 27-8, and Syracuse beat Lincoln Christian 21-14. In their most recent meeting in our 2025 data, Auburn lost to Syracuse 54-27.

Our pick

Our NEB Preps Power Index favors Syracuse, giving it a 72% chance to win (66.7 to 53.8 on the index, with a small home-field edge for Syracuse). This is NEB Preps' own computer pick from verified finals, not a poll or a betting line.