Week one for Syracuse football saw a 38-22 victory over the Ohio Bobcats. While there’s so much to take away from this one, the main storyline going in was the play of new QB Kyle McCord. The Ohio State transfer was as good as advertised, throwing for 354 yards and four touchdowns, both career highs. However, something not seen on the stat sheet caught my eye, and it’s something I wonder how sustainable it could really be.
In the win over Ohio, eight different receivers made receptions. EIGHT. That may sound almost unheard of, especially in a pro-style offense instituted for the Orange this year by new offensive coordinator Jeff Nixon. As cool as it was to see everyone get involved, I just can’t see a world in which this continues week by week.
A prime reason this could have been the case is because of the setting. It’s the first real game for Kyle McCord at Syracuse, and an important aspect of an offense is a quarterback’s chemistry with his receivers. Most likely, McCord tested the waters to see who he could trust to make big plays. The most obvious answers to that question are Oronde Gadsden II and Trebor Pena, who had 186 yards and 3 touchdowns combined through the air.
On the other hand, though, a lot of the “high profile” wideouts didn’t see as many touches as some may have hoped in their first game in orange. Georgia transfers Zeed Haynes and Jackson Meeks combined for just six receptions all contest (although they made the most of each opportunity, with 113 combined yards.) As well, redshirt junior Umari Hatcher, who was expected to take a big step up in this offense and was raved about by Fran Brown, found the ball just once for eight yards.
Things like this take time, but it is something to monitor as the season progresses on how much variety McCord tends to use in an offense. Last season at Ohio State, McCord found on average seven different players per game, so this may just be the norm. But expect McCord to figure out his top dogs and rely on them more and more, especially as the schedule gets tougher with strong ACC opponents.
