The Syracuse Athletics program earned its highest Fall ranking in school history in the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) Learfield Sports Directors' Cup standings. The Orange is tied for 16th nationally with 213 points. SU scored points in football, field hockey and men's and women's cross country. Last year the Orange was 34th in the Fall standings and SU's best Fall ranking was 33rd in 2001-02.

The 2010 Orange football team earned 45 points for winning the inaugural New Era Pinstripe Bowl. Head football coach Doug Marrone guided the Orange to an 8-5 overall record, including a victory in the inaugural New Era Pinstripe Bowl. SU's 8-5 record marked the first winning season for the team since 2001 and the second season with at least eight wins since 2001 when the Orange finished 11-3.

Under the direction of BIG EAST Coach of the Year Ange Bradley the SU field hockey squad garnered 60 points for advancing to the second round of the NCAA Championship. The fourth-ranked Orange advanced to its third consecutive NCAA Championship, where the 2010 BIG EAST Champions advanced to the second round of the tournament.

The men's and women's cross country team, under the guidance of Chris Fox, scored 60 and 48 points, respectively. The Orange women finished 10th at the NCAA Championship, while the Orange men were 14th at the national championship meet. The women's team finished the season ranked 11th nationally by the USTFCCCA and the men were ranked 10th.

In 2009-10 Syracuse had its best year in history with a school-record 368.5 points. Seven Orange teams scored points for advancing to post-season competition, women's lacrosse in the Final Four, men's lacrosse in the NCAA Tournament for the 30th time in school history, men's basketball in the Sweet 16, the men and women's cross country teams in the NCAA Championship, and field hockey and softball in the NCAA Tournament. The Orange ranked 57th out of 283 universities in the final standings.