The Orangemen were led by tenth-year head coach Ben Schwartzwalder and played their home games at Archbold Stadium in Syracuse, New York.
Syracuse finished the regular season ranked in the top 10 of both major polls after compiling a record of 8–1.
They were invited to the 1959 Orange Bowl, where they were defeated by Oklahoma.
Note: The game against Boston University was played at night.
This college football 1950s season article is a stub.