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It’s been a season of fulfilled expectations for Syracuse. At least eight wins for the fifth time since 2000. Two top-25 victories. Historic quarterback play from Kyle McCord, who broke SU’s single-season passing mark last week. It’s official: Fran Brown has drastically altered the standard in central New York.

Brown is the second person since World War II to notch eight victories in a debut head coaching season. There were a few setbacks, but Brown’s first year is already a resounding success. He didn’t necessarily need to shock Miami to cement his arrival. Though, with throngs of 2025 and 2026 recruits in attendance Saturday afternoon, it sure would’ve helped.

With the odds stacked against them, the Orange showed they’re among the Atlantic Coast Conference’s cream of the crop. They went toe-to-toe with the top-10 ranked Hurricanes in a heart-pounding, back-and-forth affair. McCord’s battle with probable Heisman finalist Cam Ward was an instant classic, while crucial turnovers flipped the game on its head numerous times.

In the end, Syracuse delivered a stunning upset victory. McCord and the offense made a few more plays than Miami, sealing the Orange’s biggest win of Brown’s revolutionary first season at the helm.

Here are some observations from Syracuse’s (9-3, 5-3 ACC) stunning 42-38 upset of No. 8 Miami (10-2, 6-2 ACC) in its regular-season finale at the JMA Wireless Dome:

McCord wins duel of the gunslingers

McCord versus Ward drew plenty of anticipation pregame. The two entered this week ranked No. 1 and 2 in passing yards, with McCord at an FBS-leading 3,946 and Ward at 3,774. It was shaped to be a duel of the gunslingers of the likes, which haven’t been seen at the Dome since the late 1990s. And McCord won.

Ward flexed his dominance at the start. By the end of the first quarter, he was 8-of-10 passing for 150 yards and a touchdown. On a third-and-4 during the game’s opening drive, Ward rolled right under duress and managed to fire a bullet to Jacolby George on a comeback route, which he hauled in for a first down. That drive ended with a Mark Fletcher Jr. two-yard rushing touchdown.

His second drive featured a 25-yard strike to George over the middle and a crucial first-down run on a quarterback keeper. Ward tossed a 16-yard touchdown to Xavier Restrepo to make it 14-0, then led an eight-play, 93-yard scoring drive capped off by a three-yard passing touchdown to Elijah Arroyo.

Through all that, McCord incompleted a fourth-down pass and went three-and-out. He faced a 21-0 hole. His line wasn’t blocking well, taking two sacks on SU’s second possession. But he began to gain a rhythm in the second quarter, leading the Orange on two straight touchdown drives — the latter of which ended with a nine-yard touchdown throw to Jackson Meeks.

The score gave McCord Syracuse’s single-season touchdown pass record with 27. Three plays into the second half, he moved to 28. McCord unleashed a high-arcing ball to Trebor Peña, who secured a 25-yard touchdown catch to tie SU with Miami at 21-21.

Ward and McCord engaged in a back-and-forth bloodbath from there. They each traded touchdown passes to end the third quarter. And in the fourth, Ward and McCord led back-to-back scoring drives, but the latter by McCord put Syracuse up 42-35. Ward nearly threw a pick and had a failed third-and-goal scramble on his final drive, which only resulted in a field goal. SU put the game to bed right afterward.

McCord finished 26-for-36 passing with 380 yards and three touchdowns, while Ward’s numbers sat at 25-for-36, 349 yards and two touchdowns. It was neck-and-neck, but McCord got the last laugh.

Restrepo balls out, but fumbles

Restrepo is the most lethal weapon Syracuse has faced this year. A surefire Day 2 2025 NFL Draft selection, Miami’s star wideout racked up 60 catches for 979 yards and 10 touchdowns through the first 11 games. His scintillating 16.3 yards per reception posed a major threat to SU’s secondary.

The Orange found difficulty matching up with Restrepo. They typically had cornerbacks Clarence Lewis and Davien Kerr, a freshman, guard him. That didn’t work too well. Syracuse also dropped into a soft zone at times, which Restrepo likely adored.

Late in the first quarter, he burned safety Devin Grant on a comeback route before extending the ball to the pylon on a 16-yard touchdown grab. In the second, Restrepo ran past safety Alijah Clark in man coverage on a crossing route as Ward found him for a 25-yard reception. He finished the first half with four catches, 63 yards and a touchdown.

The second half’s opening play was a Ward toss to Restrepo, who cut up the heart of SU’s 4-2-5 defense for a 20-yard catch off a dig route. Then, with the game tied 28-28 late in the third quarter, he made his first mistake. Restrepo picked up a third-down conversion off a screen pass, but SU’s Grant ripped the ball from his grasp. Grant ran all the way to the end zone for a 56-yard scoop and score, putting Syracuse up 35-28.

Restrepo redeemed himself, however, tallying a 40-yard reception on a crosser that set up a one-yard Miami touchdown to tie the game at 35-35 in the fourth.

Restrepo ended the day with 148 receiving yards on nine catches. Yet, Grant’s forced fumble marred his performance.

Hitting the open field

Miami’s most glaring weakness is its tackling. Pro Football Focus gave it a subpar 64.8 tackling grade entering Saturday. Finding open space to create chunk plays was paramount for Syracuse if it wanted to earn an upset win. It needed to put the Hurricanes on their heels and force them to make plays. They didn’t early on, though.

Syracuse struggled to materialize opportunities in the open field. McCord had a narrow-window pass go incomplete on fourth down to end its first drive. He then got sacked to start SU’s next possession and fumbled on a third-and-5, recovering the ball after Miami heavily pressured him.

Once Syracuse offensive coordinator Jeff Nixon schemed up his playmakers to catch balls in open space, the Orange took off. Peña broke a few tackles on a reception over the middle, gaining 26 yards as the highlight of SU’s third drive. LeQuint Allen Jr. then muscled through Miami’s second level for an eight-yard rushing touchdown.

That running game forced the Hurricanes’ tackling issues to be exacerbated. Yasin Willis bulldozed Miami on a couple of carries while Allen Jr. consistently picked up 4-5 yards a clip. That led to McCord’s first touchdown pass as Syracuse trailed 21-14 at halftime.

McCord took advantage of a one-on-one matchup to start the second half, tossing a bomb down the sideline to Peña — who gained about 10 extra yards while Jaden Harris couldn’t bring him down right away. It was a 50-yard play that led to Peña’s 25-yard touchdown one snap later.

As SU was tied 28-28 with Miami, McCord threw over the middle to Oronde Gadsden, who shed tackles from Daryl Porter Jr. and Harris to pick up 25 yards. While that drive ended in a Willis lost fumble, it showed Syracuse’s knack for chunk plays was persisting.

The Orange ended the day with seven plays of more than 20 yards, helping guide their offense all day long to compete with Ward and Co.

A signature closeout

It all came down to the fourth quarter. Syracuse went ahead 35-28 entering the final 15 minutes after Grant’s game-shifting touchdown. Yet, the last quarter is where Miami shines brightest. Its point differential in the fourth was +112 through its first 11 games. SU’s was only +8.

But the Orange came through.

A few big receptions from Meeks spurred SU to take a 42-35 lead as Allen Jr. punched in his second rushing touchdown of the day. Its defense allowed Miami to quickly cross midfield as the clock ticked past the 7:00 mark after Ward completed a few passes along the sidelines. The Hurricanes kept inching forward but faced a third-and-7 at Syracuse’s 18-yard line.

Ward dropped back and tossed an incompletion intended for Restrepo, though Grant was called for pass interference. Miami had goal-to-go, yet it got pushed back after an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty and was forced to settle for a field goal.

Allen Jr. began SU’s ensuing possession by hurdling a defender, his second clean hurdle of the game, to pick up an 11-yard rush. Two more Allen Jr. rushes gave the Orange another first down as the two-minute warning hit.

By that point, Miami had two timeouts left. One first down would seal a thrilling victory for Syracuse. On first-and-10, Allen Jr. bounced a run to the outside for a six-yard gain. Just four yards until bedlam struck. A Peña first down rush sealed it. Fans poured onto the Dome turf once the clock hit triple zeroes as Syracuse clinched its biggest win of the century.

Published on November 30, 2024 at 7:29 pm

Contact Cooper at: ccandrew@syr.edu | @cooper_andrews