The preseason recognition keeps on rolling for new Syracuse quarterback Kyle McCord. The list of watch lists for the Ohio State transfer grew this week as McCord was named to the Davey O’Brien Award Preseason Watch List, an annual award given to the top NCAA quarterback. McCord was a semifinalist with the Buckeyes last year.
These nominations are just the cherry on top of a whirlwind of an offseason for McCord. After a Cotton Bowl loss with Ohio State, McCord has adapted to a new school, new coach, new conference and more as he enters his final season of college football.
A lot of pressure, right? Well maybe not. There’s a level of pressure that comes with being a power conference starting quarterback, no matter what school you are at. But each quarterback has a slightly different situation. And for McCord, a clean slate of expectations may be the perfect backdrop for a career year.
At Ohio State, McCord was the replacement for CJ Stroud, who just won NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year. Before Stroud? Another first-round NFL talent in Justin Fields. With Syracuse it’s a slightly different position. With no disrespect to Garrett Shrader, there’s a much lower bar for McCord in who he’s replacing this time. McCord’s 3,170 passing yards in 2023 was nearly 1500 higher than Shrader.
To replicate even slightly similar numbers, McCord would already be pleasing Syracuse fans greatly.
Not to mention, all rankings aren’t so high on McCord. Multiple outlets have him not even in the top half of ACC quarterbacks. So there surely isn’t much pressure from some people.
Kyle McCord has expectations for himself. He talked at ACC media days about just wanting to win. But his expectations with the Orange are much different than what was expected out of him at Ohio State.
While watch lists are cool, the reality is dozens of players are named to each one. McCord has shown laser-focus in his time with Syracuse football so far. For a Syracuse team that hasn’t won a bowl game since 2018, the bar has been set pretty low. McCord has plenty of opportunities to raise it.
