Syracuse Football: What Fran Brown has done in short time ‘speaks volumes,’ says 4-star QB commit Kyle McCord

Four-star Ohio State transfer Kyle McCord, one of the top quarterbacks nationwide who had been in the NCAA’s transfer portal, committed to Syracuse football on Sunday, the latest in a string of terrific recruiting wins for new head coach Fran Brown and his staff.

The 6-foot-3, 215-pound McCord, a junior with the Big Ten Conference’s Buckeyes, has one year of collegiate eligibility remaining, and he said in an interview that he believes the Syracuse football program is headed in a positive direction, based on its recent recruiting successes and the coaching staff that Brown is building on the Hill.

McCord, rated as four stars, a top-15 overall prospect and a top-10 quarterback in national transfer rankings, had taken a visit to fellow Big Ten Conference school Nebraska, but after that trip to the Cornhuskers, several media reports stated that he was continuing to look at other schools, and the ‘Cuse was getting some chatter as a possible destination for McCord.

This weekend, he was one of roughly 20 players on the ‘Cuse campus taking official visits, with these prospects including transfer targets, 2024 high school recruits, and players in the senior class who had previously given verbal commitments to the Orange.

Since Brown was formally introduced by SU Athletics on December 4 as the new ‘Cuse head coach, replacing Dino Babers, the former defensive backs coach at Georgia has put together an impressive staff while landing commitments from multiple highly rated college transfers and 2024 prospects.

Syracuse football 4-star QB commit Kyle McCord is high on ‘Cuse and its new head coach.

McCord, a native of Mount Laurel, N.J., completed nearly 66 percent of his passes for 3,170 yards in the 2023 season at Ohio State, while throwing for 24 touchdowns against just six interceptions.

Back in his prep-school days, he received a scholarship offer from the ‘Cuse in May of 2018. He starred at the St. Joseph’s Preparatory School in Philadelphia, and the industry-generated 247Sports Composite rated him as a five-star, top-30 national prospect in the 2021 class.

Both Mount Laurel and Philadelphia are close in proximity to Camden, N.J., which is the hometown of Brown and new Syracuse football defensive coordinator Elijah Robinson.

ESPN’s Pete Thamel noted in a piece that McCord boasts “deep ties” to the Orange coaching staff. Writes Thamel, McCord “grew up in New Jersey and has known both Brown and quarterbacks coach Nunzio Campanile for a decade. He also has deep ties to Jeff Nixon, the expected hire at offensive coordinator who is finishing the season as the New York Giants’ running backs coach.”

McCord told Thamel that his familiarity with the ‘Cuse coaching staff, and the experience that this staff possesses, proved a “big factor” in why he committed to Syracuse football.

“What Coach Fran has been able to do in the last few weeks since becoming head coach, it speaks volumes,” McCord said to ESPN. “I think the pieces are all coming together at the right time.”

Getting McCord out of the portal was a huge pick-up for Brown and his assistants, and from many comments I’ve seen among national observers, the Orange appears to have more positive recruiting news likely to arrive soon.