Kyle McCord throws for 4 touchdowns, 385 yards and Syracuse defeats Holy Cross 42-14

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) — Kyle McCord threw for four touchdowns, all in the first half, and 385 yards and Syracuse defeated FCS Holy Cross 42-14 Saturday.

McCord’s scoring passes went to four different receivers. The Ohio State transfer, just four games into his first and only Syracuse season, is already just the sixth Orange quarterback to record three or more 300-yard passing performances in a career. He was 28 of a career-high 50 attempts and had two interceptions.

LeQuint Allen ran for 81 yards and a 1-yard score and he caught seven passes for 54 yards. Jackson Meeks had a career-high 10 receptions for 161 yards to lead Syracuse. The Orange had 541 yards of total offense to 203 for the Crusaders.

“We want to keep growing on special teams," Syracuse coach Fran Brown said. “We want to continue to get better rushing the passer. Continue to get better at protecting our quarterback, and better at running the football. We’re nowhere near where we can be.”

Joe Pesansky was 14 of 25 for 167 yards for Holy Cross but had a 33-yard pick 6 to Jayden Bellamy. Max Mosey had five receptions for 105 yards and one score.

“This was a great opportunity for us to see how we match up against a really good team,” Mosey said. “Obviously the game didn’t go the way we wanted it to but there are a lot of positives we can take out of it and take it into Patriot League play. The scoreboard doesn’t really show how I feel about the game, but I think we did pretty good.”

Syracuse is 22-0 against FCS opponents.

Syracuse (3-1) jumped out to a 21-0 lead with 14:54 to go in the second quarter. The Orange defense held the Crusaders (1-4) to three three-and outs to start the game and McCord connected on touchdown passes of seven yards to Umari Hatcher, 23 yards to Darrell Gill Jr. and a 38-yard strike to Meeks.

Syracuse outgained the Crusaders 204 to 14 yards and allowed no first downs in the first quarter.

The Orange appeared to be in total control, but the Crusaders got untracked and answered quickly in the second. Pesansky hit a wide-open Mosey down the middle at the Syracuse 32. Mosey ran it in untouched for a 63-yard score. On their next drive, running back Sam Slade received the toss from Pesansky and passed to Jacob Petersen from 27 yards out, bringing the Crusaders to 21-14 midway through the second. The Crusaders defense came alive, too, sacking McCord twice.

“The message at halftime (from Brown) was just about ‘Cuse vs. ’Cuse and not playing up to our standard on offense and defense. It was a good speech to hear. Anytime coach gets going you know it's from the heart,” McCord said.

Syracuse regained control right before the half as McCord hit Trebor Pena on a 4-yard scoring strike to extend the Orange lead to 28-14 at the break. Allen’s 1-yard dive gave the Orange a 35-14 lead as time expired in the third.

"I'm incredibly proud of the effort we put out today. Our goal was to make a statement," Holy Cross coach Dan Curran said. “We came up short. Had some opportunities in the second half to convert some things. Weren’t quite able to do it. It was certainly a very competitive game early on. These kids came out to compete, not just to have an experience, and it showed.”

The Takeaway:

If there are moral victories, this was it. Holy Cross made it a game, sacked McCord three times, and held their own against a FBS opponent.

Syracuse coach Fran Brown can’t be feeling good about this win. The offensive line couldn’t protect McCord, the Orange committed five penalties, and the field goal kicking situation needs to be addressed.

Invisible Man

Pre-season All-ACC tight end Oronde Gadsden II caught just two passes a week ago against Stanford and just one Saturday against Holy Cross.

Special Teams Not So Special

Syracuse was 0 for 3 on field goal attempts. Jadyn Oh missed on a 41-yard attempt after incumbent Brady Denaburg missed on kicks of 28 and 45 yards.

Oh, Those Penalties

Syracuse committed six penalties, including one that negated a 27-yard touchdown pass to Hatcher.

Up Next:

Holy Cross: The Crusaders open Patriot League play Saturday at Colgate.

Syracuse: The Orange head to Las Vegas to play UNLV Friday night.

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Mark Frank, The Associated Press