Former Ohio State quarterback Kyle McCord has found a new home at Syracuse. He has the Orange off to a 2-1 start and is playing some of the best football of his career in the process. On Friday night, McCord escaped the pocket and leaped into the end zone for a touchdown while trying to lead Syracuse back from a late deficit against Stanford.
After the play, McCord's old top target with the Buckeyes and current Arizona Cardinals wideout Marvin Harrison Jr. had to chime in on his old quarterback showing off his hops.
“@kylemccord16 that was the most athletic thing I’ve ever seen you do🔥😂,” Harrison Jr. posted on X, formerly Twitter, after the score.
McCord and Harrison Jr. go way back. The two formed one of the best duos in the country back in high school at St. Joseph's Prep, a private school in Philadelphia. Then, they both ended up at Ohio State, where they formed an extremely dangerous duo in 2023 on a very good Buckeyes team. After last season, Harrison Jr. departed for the NFL and McCord left in the transfer portal before ending up at Syracuse.
Syracuse suffers first loss of the season vs. Stanford
On Friday night, Syracuse football followed in the footsteps of many of their ACC peers. Just when then hype started to pile up, they quickly came crashing back down to Earth.
After a big win against Georgia Tech in Week 2, Syracuse played a sluggish first half as a big favorite against new ACC foe Stanford before losing 26-24 on a last-second field goal. Kyle McCord led an admirable comeback in the second half, highlighted by his highlight scramble for a touchdown and then a late touchdown pass to Jackson Meeks that gave Syracuse the lead late.
The difference in the game, however, was star Stanford wide receiver Elic Ayomanor. Ayomanor made a name for himself last season with a monster second half against Colorado, and he was putting all of his skills on display again in this one. In the first half, Ayomanor showed off his body control and sticky hands with a twisting one-handed touchdown grab.
Then, on the Cardinal's final drive, Ayomanor showcased elite ball tracking ability to get his team in field goal range.
For Syracuse, it's a brutal loss at home in the midst of an ACC race that is definitely going to be very close down the stretch of the season. Almost any team in the conference can still make the College Football Playoff as the conference champion, and losses like these will add up later on.