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When asked how Kyle McCord’s comfort level with Syracuse’s coaching staff helped him thrive in his first season with the Orange, Fran Brown responded without hesitation.

“Comfort? He around me, he knows I got his back. He ain’t got to worry about nothing with me,” Brown said with a smile.

That unwavering support starkly differed from when Ohio State kicked McCord to the curb a year earlier following a loss to Michigan, leading him to enter the transfer portal. While recruiting McCord, Brown and SU quarterbacks coach Nunzio Campanile emphasized he was among the best signal callers in the country — which hasn’t wavered.

“I think that we knew a lot more than a lot of other people how talented he was,” Campanile said. “And he’s gotten that faith from us, from the second he got here, because we knew when we took him that he was going to be one of the best quarterbacks in America. And he’s lived up to that every day.”

With full trust behind him, McCord led Division I in passing yards (4,326) while rewriting the Orange’s single-season passing records in 2024. The quarterback led Syracuse to nine regular-season wins, tied for its most in a regular season this century. McCord’s success coincides with Syracuse sparking a turnaround in Brown’s first season at the helm following eight years of mediocrity under Dino Babers.

“Knowing that your head coach has your back through it all just allows you to go out and play confident, play free, just have fun,” McCord said.

McCord’s relationships with Brown, Campanile and offensive coordinator, Jeff Nixon, were integral to his decision to transfer to SU. Brown and Campanile have each known McCord since his middle school days. Meanwhile, McCord has known Nixon since early in his childhood because they both lived in Mount Laurel, New Jersey.

While McCord tested the portal’s waters, his decision came down to Syracuse and Nebraska. Ultimately, McCord’s faith in SU’s coaching staff won him over, even with the Cornhuskers’ NIL offer more than doubling the Orange’s.

“Syracuse was the top choice, just because of the relationships and the talent that coach Fran brought in to surround Kyle,” McCord’s father, Derek, told The Daily Orange in August.

Eleven months later, McCord said transferring to SU was the best decision of his life after becoming its single-season passing record holder following a career-high 470 yards in a win over UConn. A week later, the euphoric feeling was further enhanced.

Minutes before SU’s primetime game against then-No. 8 Miami started, Ohio State fell to Michigan for the fourth straight year. The Buckeyes couldn’t blame McCord this time. Over the next few hours, the signal caller proved he was never their problem.

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Despite an initial 21-0 deficit, McCord outdueled Heisman-hopeful Cam Ward and led the Orange to their largest comeback win in program history and first top-10 win since 2017. The victory helped Syracuse finish the season ranked No. 23 in the AP Poll, its first ranking since 2022.

Following the game, McCord went viral for dancing and rapping to “In & Out” by Lud Foe. McCord and other players in SU’s locker room passionately sang the lyrics, “You diss on my name, you get smoked on the same day.”

Postgame, McCord gave a simple answer when asked if he had any extra satisfaction that SU upset Miami the same day Ohio State fell to the Wolverines.

“Everything comes full circle,” he said while smiling.

After serving as future NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year C.J. Stroud’s backup at OSU during his first two collegiate seasons, McCord — ESPN’s No. 31 class of 2021 recruit — seemed set to become its next starter. Head coach Ryan Day, however, didn’t name the Buckeyes’ starting quarterback until three days before its first game.

McCord won the competition over Devin Brown, ESPN’s No. 81 class of 2022 recruit, but Day wouldn’t fully commit to him as OSU’s starter until after it beat Notre Dame in Week 4. The Buckeyes then won seven consecutive games, bringing their record to 11-0, giving them no reason to bench McCord.

Though following the first setback, after the Michigan game, Day and Co. wouldn’t commit to McCord as their starter going forward. McCord needed to go somewhere where he was trusted. And Syracuse needed a quarterback to lift it out of irrelevance. The Orange’s missing piece instantly fit like a glove.

While growing up, McCord trained with former Super Bowl MVP quarterback Phill Simms and his son Matt, also a signal caller who bounced around the NFL from 2012-19. Matt attended Don Bosco Prep High School (New Jersey), where Campanile was his offensive coordinator. Because of McCord’s understanding of Campanile’s system through training with the Simmses, he instantly adapted to his new quarterbacks coach.

“From the first practice, I was like, ‘Alright, that’s neat.’ We don’t have to spend a lot of time getting on the same page,” Campanile said.

Unlike worrying about a grueling competition, McCord’s biggest off-season hurdle was building chemistry with his teammates and learning different concepts. Campanile realized in February McCord wouldn’t have any trouble transitioning to SU. By the middle of spring ball, he knew the Orange’s offense was going to click.

Kyle McCord completed 367-of-558 passes for 4,326 yards and 29 touchdowns throughout the regular season. Jacob Halsema | Staff Photographer

Instantly, Syracuse’s air-raid offense became among the best attacks in the country. Simultaneously, McCord played with an unseen swagger from his OSU days. In Week 2, he went viral for showing his emotion on the sideline. Later in the game, McCord emphatically celebrated after running for a first down by spiking the ball before screaming excitedly.

But even with McCord’s rare lows, the Orange knew leaning on him was their best option to bounce back. They could’ve shied away from him following a five-interception performance against Pitt. Instead, SU kept letting McCord rip.

“When you know that the people who are coaching you believe in you 1,000%, you have the ability to go out and make plays,” Campanile said. “And if you make mistakes, you know that, ‘Hey, you know, we’re going to ride with you no matter what, and you’re our guy,’ and he’s done a great job of that.”

Brown said he should gift Day a bottle of champagne for allowing Syracuse to get McCord following its win over Georgia Tech. Two days after SU’s upset over the Hurricanes and OSU’s loss, Brown doubled down, saying he should send a “f—-ing case” of champagne to Columbus.

And Brown should. In his first season as a head coach, Syracuse proved its winning culture is back. Without the coaching staff’s pursuit, vision and trust in McCord, the Orange are just another ACC school.

While it was just for a season, McCord sprung SU back to relevance. More importantly, it gave Brown a much-needed resume booster to pair with his recruiting prowess and culture, beginning the program’s return to college football’s upper echelon.

Published on December 5, 2024 at 1:05 am

Contact Justin: justingirshon@gmail.com | @JustinGirshon