Kyle McCord passes for 4 TDs as Syracuse knocks off newly ranked No. 23 Georgia Tech 31-28

SYRACUSE — Future opponents of Syracuse football might want to take seriously a message delivered from first-year coach Fran Brown.

Don’t give him any bulletin board material because it may bite you.

Kyle McCord passed for 381 yards and four touchdowns, two each to Trebor Pena and Oronde Gadsden II, and Syracuse held on to knock off newly ranked No. 23 Georgia Tech on Saturday.

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Earlier in the week, Georgia Tech coach Brent Key said his team’s matchup against the Orange “wasn’t about Xs and Os” but rather being physical against Syracuse. Brown took that as a swipe at his program being soft.

“I took it personal when he said it wasn’t about Xs and Os,” Brown said. “It was about coming up here and being physical and tough for four hours. We’re from the Northeast. What you mean by that? Like we’re not physical and tough? ... Syracuse has been physical forever. I want to make sure that will never be said about us. We’re not soft. That bothered me.

“I’ve coached with (Georgia coach) Kirby Smart and (former Georgia co-defensive coordinator) Will Muschamp. That’s what they do. Why would we not be a tough physical football team?,” Brown added. “I want to make sure everyone understands that. When you play us, just be quiet. Don’t give no ammo to me. You give ammo to me, I’m coming at you full tilt.”

The Yellow Jackets (2-1, 1-1 ACC), ranked in the AP Top 25 last week for the first time since 2015, cut the lead to three with 2:31 to go on a 15-yard scoring run by Jamal Haynes.

The Orange made sure Georgia Tech never got the ball back, running out the clock for their first win against a ranked opponent since October 2022 against North Carolina State.

“We knew they were a physical team and (thought) we could control that. At times today it showed that we were really not, and that came down to physicality,” Key said.

McCord was 32-of-46 passing, with career highs in attempts and completions. Gadsden had six catches for 93 yards. Pena has five touchdowns on the young season.

Syracuse (2-0, 1-0 ACC) accumulated 515 yards in total offense.

Not known for his running ability, McCord scrambled for 16 yards on a third-and-3, the longest run of his career, and his emotions took over after that play.

“That was a big point of the game. The spike? I probably need to reel the emotions in a bit,” he said.

Haynes King was 28-of-38 for 259 yards for Georgia Tech. He passed for one score and ran for two.

King escaped the grasp of linebacker Derek McDonald and scrambled 21 yards for his first score. He faked a pitch and scored from 26 yards out to get Georgia Tech to 21-14 with 4:39 to go in the first half.

The Orange defense held Haynes, the Yellow Jackets’ leading rusher, to just 35 yards on 11 carries. He had averaged 5.7 yards a carry entering the game.

“He (Brown) just kept playing that clip (Key clip) over and over and over and over at practice, throughout the week,” Syracuse edge rusher Fadil Diggs said. “He just wanted to get it through our head and it looked like we were the more physical team.”

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The Takeaway

Georgia Tech: The Yellow Jackets need to have their running game rolling to give the dual-threat King more help. The Orange clamped down on that.

Syracuse: Brown said his team needed to get more physical after their season-opening win against Ohio. His players must have heard him, holding the Yellow Jackets to 112 yards rushing.

Poll Implications

Georgia Tech will likely fall from the rankings.

Special Teams Not So Special

Syracuse has some work to do on its special teams. Georgia Tech blocked a field goal, a punt and recovered an onside kick.

It’s Been An Honor

The jersey of former Syracuse defensive end Dwight Freeney, recently inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, was lifted to the rafters during halftime ceremonies.

Up Next

Georgia Tech: The Yellow Jackets return home to face VMI next Saturday.

Syracuse: The Orange have a week off before another early-season conference game Sept. 20 against Stanford.

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