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Just over 17 minutes into Saturday’s game, Syracuse trailed Miami 21-0. Led by star quarterback Cam Ward, the Hurricanes posted three effortless drives. Meanwhile, Kyle McCord had limited time on the field.

“There were a lot of self-inflicted wounds,” SU head coach Fran Brown said. “Once we got through with getting that out, we got to play football.”

Despite their deficit, the Orange came storming back with each possession. In a shootout between two top passers in the nation — McCord entered with a nation-leading 3,946 passing yards while Ward led the country in passing touchdowns through 11 games at 34 — SU leaned on its gunslinger and defense in the clutch to mount a comeback.

Syracuse (9-3, 5-3 Atlantic Coast Conference) took down No. 8 Miami (10-2, 6-2 ACC) 42-38 Saturday in its regular-season finale, completing its largest comeback in program history. While the Hurricanes failed to clinch an ACC title game berth, SU secured its first top-10 victory since 2017. McCord’s 380 passing yards and three touchdowns outdueled Ward’s 349 and two touchdowns.

“Coming in, we knew we were going to score points,” McCord said postgame. “They have a really good offense, really good quarterback, but I had a lot of confidence in us and knew that we could go toe to toe with them. And then our defense was going to come up and make a big play.”

Syracuse players burst onto the field in celebration following the Orange’s upset win over Miami. The win marked SU’s first top 10 victory since 2017. Aaron Hammer | Staff Photographer

SU’s defense did just that when it mattered most. While the star quarterbacks took center stage with their prolific numbers, SU’s defense made the game-altering play. With minutes to go in the third quarter and the game squared at 28-28, Ward hit star receiver Xavier Restrepo through the middle. As Restrepo was wrapped up, he fumbled the ball. Syracuse safety Devin Grant scooped it off a bounce and returned it 56 yards for a 35-28 lead — its first of the game.

“The ball’s the program. Just punching at the ball, I was grateful for it to come out and then fortunate to take it to the house,” Grant said.

The Orange never trailed the rest of the way. The Hurricanes stormed back with a Restrepo 40-yard gain down to the two, followed by a Damien Martinez rushing score, knotting the game at 35-35. But Syracuse then split through the defense with multiple passes to Jackson Meeks before a LeQuint Allen Jr. score.

With the Orange leading 42-35 and nine minutes to play, Ward took the Hurricanes down to SU’s seven. Syracuse’s defense held strong and forced a field goal with 3:42 to play. Leading by four, Allen Jr. capped the game, winding the clock and securing the victory.

While SU ended on top, it found itself down big early. The Orange started the game with their defense on the field. Attempting to stop Ward wasn’t easy. SU was mere feet away from forcing a three-and-out but Ward worked his magic, scampering to the right and finding Jacolby George for 19 yards. A few plays later, Mark Fletcher Jr. punched in for the Hurricanes.

Miami’s offense entered as one of the best in the nation. Anchored by Ward under center, wide receivers Restrepo and Elijah Arroyo and a potent rushing attack, the Hurricanes played to their usual level. The question was if SU could match.

It appeared Syracuse could. A second-and-5 strike resulted in Trebor Peña streaking down the left sideline for six. As the Orange celebrated, a flag was thrown for illegal formation, negating the touchdown.

The Hurricanes punished SU on the next drive with Restrepo tipping the pylon to extend the lead to 14-0 just eight minutes in. A Heisman Trophy contender, Ward continuously picked apart the Orange’s secondary. SU doesn’t often host quarterbacks of his caliber. Jameis Winston, Lamar Jackson and Trevor Lawrence have entered the Dome in recent memory and quickly found a rhythm. Ward followed suit.

To start the second quarter, Ward found a wide-open Arroyo in the end zone. The quarterback was exquisite through his first three drives, totaling 153 yards on 75% passing and two touchdowns.

Miami quarterback Cam Ward picked apart Syracuse’s defense for large portions of Saturday’s contest. Ward completed 25 of his 36 passes for 239 yards and two touchdowns. Aaron Hammer | Staff Photographer

“There’s only so much that you’ll be able to do to stop an offense like that because they’re good in all areas on a football field,” Brown said. “We were able to take some possession from those guys and get them to punt the ball a few times. I think that helped us out.”

Trailing by 21, the Orange needed to embark on the program’s biggest comeback ever. Ward was dealing and SU had no answer.

McCord said he discussed with Allen Jr. the possession-by-possession way to get back into the game — score, get a stop, score again, trail by seven at halftime and tie it to start the second half. It was easier said than done. But SU did exactly that.

“On offense, we knew that we were gonna have to start putting some points up to help our defense out,” McCord said. “And I knew it was a matter of time until they started getting stops.”

The Orange first answered with a rush by Allen Jr. into the end zone with 10:54 to play in the first half. SU then mustered a defensive stop for the first time and put McCord back on the field. Syracuse faced a pivotal third-and-9, and McCord dropped back, turned left and fired a fade to Meeks. The Georgia transfer high-pointed the ball in the back corner, boxing out Daryl Porter Jr. to cut the deficit to seven.

While Ward entered as a top quarterback in the country, McCord has been equally as good throughout the year. Against UConn last week, he set a new program record for single-season passing yards. His conversion to Meeks gave him the passing touchdowns record. With its offense finding a groove and trailing by seven at halftime, SU’s defense regrouped.

“Giving up 21 points is like ‘Wow,’” Grant said. “So when we sat down and saw the doctor at halftime, it was like, ‘OK, we gotta lock in, get the ball back to Kyle and let him do what he does best.’”

McCord took his shots and didn’t miss. A 50-yard strike to Peña down the left side started it. On the next play, McCord surveyed right, hitting Peña on the back shoulder in the end zone. After trailing 21-0, Syracuse tied it.

The squads wrestled back and forth until Grant’s pivotal play pushed the game in SU’s favor. Syracuse’s 35-28 lead was matched but never relinquished as the Orange closed out the game.

“We was just doubted. I was just like, ‘Okay, y’all doubting us, we’re cool with that,’” Brown said.

Three-hundred-sixty-seven days ago, Brown was hired to revamp a middling program. Led by an interim head coach, the 2023 Orange squeaked their way into a bowl appearance. He brought in McCord after the quarterback took the brunt of the blame for another Ohio State mishap against Michigan.

Just before Saturday’s kickoff in Syracuse, the “revitalized” Buckeyes scored a mere 10 points, falling to the unranked Wolverines this time in embarrassing fashion. In the ensuing hours, McCord went toe to toe and eventually out-dueled a consensus top pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.

In possibly his final game with the Orange, McCord and SU cemented Brown’s new age of Syracuse football.

“This win shows that Syracuse is for real. To be a part of that team that turned things around and got things going in the right direction, I think that’s going to last forever,” McCord said.

Published on November 30, 2024 at 7:32 pm

Contact Aiden at: amstepan@syr.edu | @AidenStepansky