Kyle McCord Leads Syracuse Football QBs BUT Who Should be the BACKUP? | Syracuse Orange Podcast

Kyle McCord what are Kyle McCord's expectations and who should be the backup quarterback for Syracuse football this [Music] season you are locked on Syracuse your daily podcast on the Syracuse Orange part of the locked on podcast Network your team every day hello everyone and welcome into locked on Syracuse I'm Jackson holer and thank you for making us your first listen of every sing single day here on the lockdown podcast Network where it's your team every day and we're free and available wherever you get your podcast and on today's show we are joined by Neil Adler from inside the loudhouse we're talking about quarterbacks Kyle McCord the unquestioned starter for this team but who should be the backup quarterback behind him we're going to discuss that here on today's podcast plus the best and worst position groups on this team for next season today's episode is brought to you by Game Time download the game time app create an account use code locked on college for $20 off your first purchase terms apply all right Neil thank you so much for joining the podcast today uh let's just start off right away with Kyle McCord and what are your expectations from mord this season well thanks for having me on Jackson as always I really appreciate you brother um I expect him to lead them to the cfp and win the Heisman that's my expectations for this SE I mean hey you bat you're jumping off with fire here well why sugarcoat it I think that I'm just really fascinated by this upcoming season obviously the the excitement the hype built around Fran Brown and his staff the recruiting uh both at the high school level in 2024 25 Etc and then obviously out the transfer portal with Kyle McCord and and other really strong players I think Kyle McCord he was solid at Ohio State uh you know I'm sure Ohio Buckey fans might have things to say good or bad about him but last time I checked they were 11-1 last year they uh in the regular season when he was there with their only loss to the eventual National Champion Michigan um and I think he threw for like over 3,000 yards 24 tou 24 touchdowns six intercept I mean that's solid um did they expect more in Columbus you know that's for them to talk about uh I think that Kyle is going to fit right in well um he's from New Jersey he's known multiple Syracuse coaches since he was a kid and I think he's coming in he's going to lead the team obviously uh I think the offense can be really good this year because it's going to be much better balance than last year or even other recent Seasons given Kyle as the signal caller plus all their weapons at tight end and wide receiver and then a nice running back room so if the knock on wood if the offensive line holds up I I think they could be a a solid strong offensive team so is Kyle going to be you know on the all ACC first team I don't know there's a lot of good quarterbacks in the ACC but he's this is no disrespect to Garrett Trader because he was also injured for a lot of last year but this is certainly an upgrade you know again assuming Kyle remains injuryf free and I think he's gonna have a good year I agree with you I think the difference between McCord and shider just by the brief amount that we've watched of McCord especially in a Syracuse uniform I'm really only going to take the spring game sure it's the zip on the ball yeah it's the zip like I don't really know how else to describe it other than it just it looks s significantly different I used to say with Garrett shider when he throws the ball it looks like he's really putting a lot of effort into it and the ball comes out and it looks like a lollipop it almost looks like it's like rainbowing out of him he was pretty good but he clearly had his limitations especially because he's a converted wide receiver sure he was a wide receiver Kyle McCord was a five-star High School Prospect maybe he didn't live up to the crazy expectations that you're going to have at Ohio State right the three quarterbacks that came before him were all first round NFL draft picks sure but yeah he was a a top 10 quarterback in the country on quarterback rating top 10 in the country and I get he had weapons and all of that but we're going to find out this season with their new quarterback just how good or can anyone go into the Ohio State offense and play decent ball right right yeah and and you're right about trader and I I really liked him as just as as a football player he's tough he was going through injuries definitely not as skilled quote unquote uh in terms of a pocket passer as Kyle McCord but he could run the ball and he just gave it his all so you know hats off to him and I really love loved him from that standpoint but you're right about Kyle he can sling it I mean he really can so if he's if he's jelling with these uh this receiver room whether it's Gadson and valari and Jamie Trumble at tight end and all the the wide rece traditional wide receivers both you know returnees and and and transfers and um you know High School um commits they they've got a lot of weapons they really do and so if they're all jelling and the offense is jelling under the rest of the staff um I think they can be really good are they going to be the best offense in the AC see I don't know who knows I I saw a recent rating out there that had him in like the way bottom half and I was like I I don't know about that I I think they're going to have a pretty good offense I I you know I always acknowledge my homerism I went to Syracuse obviously right you know lead a fan site and all that but you know I'm not afraid to call it like I see it as well and the Syracuse offense last year was just had a rough go especially after staer got injured you know valari doing the Wildcat and all that and they were really limited L Quinn Allen had a good year but but this year again uh knock on W um you know stay away from injuries they have I think really solid depth I think they have really solid depth across the board in most position groups but again between Kyle and then the receiver room and the running backs I think this could be a really fun year and I think I think he could you know he was a like you said he was a five-star recruit coming out of I think it was St Joe's Prep in Philly um you know he was a fourstar you know highly rated Prospect in the transfer portal a lot you know some national pundants were like why did he go to Syracuse you know that's a step down and all that and you know that's fine those are Optics but sorry to cut you off here schools gonna be a step down from Ohio State how many schools are are a better standing than Ohio State you might be able to you can only really count it on your palm Georgia Georgia well they're set at Georgia yeah is set sure Oregon's going to be really good this year you know you've you m Michigan like you're not gonna go from Ohio State to Michigan you can't do that I I I think the thing it was just so fascinating after he he transferred to Syracuse and all the pundit saying stuff some was positive some was negative nonsense I mean I get it Syracuse obviously you know has an historical brand but in recent Seasons under Dino babers no disrespect I think he's a really nice guy but you know they went to a couple bowls but they were not nationally relevant and they weren't really all that relevant since joining the ACC and even in the last two years they went to two bowl games fine but they started off six and0 and then four and0 but they ended up 13 and 13 combined so there for for a guy like Kyle to transfer from Ohio State to Syracuse maybe leav some people scratching their heads but again you got to dig deeper and look at the context Fran Brown and multiple assistants are from New Jersey the Philadelphia area they've known him since he was kid that kind of connection that speaks volume so I get it Ohio state is up here and Syracuse is certainly not anywhere near that but who knows where Fran Brown's going to lead the orange and I just I I think it could be a really good fit given those long-standing relationships and given the the targets that um McCord is going to have to throw to between receivers tight ends and uh running backs out of the back field he definitely has the upside to be an all ACC quarterback I did see online out there they released the the preseason all team keep in mind well mcord didn't make it but keep in mind they only took one quarterback and it was only the first team that they released that was it so I I think cam Ward from Miami made itam cam Ward was the fourth ranked transfer quarterback in the country McCord was down at 14th right and cam Ward was a top 15 overall trans in the country so I I completely understood it and it's one of those things where I think McCord has the upside to being a first teamer I certainly think he could be on the first second or third team at the end of the season but you know for now preseason first team I'm not so sure but I do have high hopes for Kyle McCord this season all right Neil let's talk about the back quarterbacks sure because we have kind of alluded to it that if McCord stays health with those weapons around him actually in yesterday's podcast I talked about lwen Allen and will Nixon and and and yine Willis the the true freshman and they got some dudes they got some the offensive line maybe is a work in progress but we'll see how it all shapes out over the course of training camp it's one thing to watch baseball on TV that at times can get pretty boring but going to a game in person is an awesome experience and I'm looking forward to watching the New York Mets for the rest of the summer and the way I'll watch the Mets in person is by using game time game time is an authorized ticket Marketplace in Major League Baseball which makes getting tickets faster and easier prices on the game time map actually go down the closer it gets to the first pitch with killer last minute deals all in prices views from your 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everchanging landscape of College athletics including conference realignment the transfer portal nil new college football expanded playoffs and more lock on college football is available on YouTube and whenever you get your podcast part of the lockdown podcast Network your team and every day the backup quarterback is wide open according to Fran Brown and there are a Backup QB? few names that I can throw out to you Carlos Del Rio Wilson brayen Davis Michael Johnson junor if we recall when he transferred he was listed as a weapon from Florida Atlantic right and there's also Jakari Williams a a three star quarterback prospect for this upcoming season Neil in your opinion who do you think should be the backup quarterback for this team I have no idea uh to answer your question I know it would be a tough question yeah um the one thing I will say I believe Braden Davis has moved over to wide receiver if I'm not mistaken um I don't know that he's been taking reps I don't want to misspeak but I feel like I've seen some recent stuff out there um that he wasn't necessarily in the mix but I I do it does sound to me like it'll be you know caros Del Rio Wilson uh Michael Johnson Jr or Jakari Williams I think the safe answer would be Carlos Del Rio Wilson because he's been with the program he's gotten reps in the past um and you know he can throw it he just hasn't gotten a lot of reps and and when he's been out there I don't think he's done a ton again not trying to you know be mean or anything but you know he just hasn't had a lot of chances um so I would go with him uh Michael Johnson Jr he was at I believe Penn State and then Florida Atlantic y you know the son of Michael Johnson one of the assistants um yes let's is a weapon I think he's played I think he's played wide receiver too yeah I've never I think he's also maybe played running back I've never seen someone listed as a weapon as their position I seen athlete all the time MTI they weapon is just Hey listen if he's a weapon cool um and you know given his where he's played in the past and from what I've read about him and whatnot he seems like a super versatile and athletic athlete um but again what kind of reps has he had in in college I I I don't believe I don't even know if he's throwing a I was looking up his stats before we were coming on I don't think he's throwing a pass or if he's thrown it's very very limited I think he maybe threw one or two passes I don't have the stats on me but at the top of my head if I remember when I set it on podcast I believe he transferred like months ago I might have said his stats and it was like one or two career passes that he's thrown okay so since we're talking here and I've got up a lot of different stuff on my web browsers that looks like in 2023 he was 0 for one um at FL Atlantic past attempts according to ESPN so all right take it for what it's worth um and then well ESPN's not usually wrong about their stats no sometimes you know it's interesting because when I when I write articles I not to go a tangent you know I look up ESPN or some of the other media Outlets but then I always go to you know Su Athletics website and usually they're pretty similar there might be a smidge of a difference but anyway one way or another he hasn't thrown a lot of passes in college and then you know Jakari Williams came High three star I think for a while he might have been a four star on some of the recruiting websites whatever um but I mean he's really talented as well but he's a true freshman so you've got Carlos Del Rio Wilson who's been with the program and it has taken some some reps some snaps and games you've got and then you've got a transfer in and a true freshman and then I believe they have two other freshman on the roster as well I don't know I think they're they might be preferred Walk-Ons AJ AJ Miller am I getting that name right I think you might be but I don't think they're really like I know the quarterback competition's open but I think it's down to like a few names and that's about it yeah so again if I had to guess right now it's uh car would be would be in there at the number two spot based on his experience level but he listen let's see how you know fall Camp goes ahead of the season starting uh in a couple of weeks um it's um you know Fran Brown like you said he has definitely not been shy about saying that they need to close the gap between Kyle and the backups and you know they're not going to necessarily be at Kyle's level Kyle's Kyle's a St your your back is never typically going to be on the level of your starter however especially in the NFL but in college it sometimes will happen I I've seen it before especially when it's a true freshman right uh but usually that those are the the generational quarterback recruits uh the the two examples that come off my head are uh are Trevor Lawrence he was better than the starter I think it was Kelly Bryant he was the starter but he was better better and I refuse to believe that he wasn't better in training camp but they just gave it to Kelly Bryant as the incumbent starter because I I'm of the belief that you don't just go from a clear backup to a a clear definitive one of the best players in the country in in five weeks right like I'm just not of that belief and then there was also Caleb Williams who did something similar at Oklahoma so Jakari Williams is not on that level in terms of recruiting but sometimes it does happen where the backup quarterback can actually be better than the starter they're just not playing absolutely absolutely and um you know we'll see how things shake out I I I would I would assume unless things drastically change that Carlos will be number two and then in terms of the depth chart number three Jakari or Michael Johnson um but it would be we all hope that Kyle is healthy all year long and all that because obviously that could be concerning um but those other three guys I think they all have good skill sets they just got to get reps and they got to get used to well Carlos doesn't need to get used to the well everyone's getting used to the system because it's a new relatively new coaching staff but he's been with the program the other two guys have not so we'll see it's um is it a cause for concern um I don't I don't like to get concerned about things until there's a reason to be concerned but it's I would say it's like something to monitor something to keep an eyee out for absolutely well I'll take it a step further I actually when I look at this roster on paper maybe it's a good thing that I'm actually saying this I think their biggest concern is the backup quarterback okay that's fair I think it is because listen if if Kyle McCord doesn't get hurt he doesn't start playing so horribly right those are the two outcomes he wouldn't be playing then they're going to be fine right they'll be fine they'll be a good team in all likelihood sure you know I I think they're going to win eight games this season sounds good provided McCord's healthy for basically the entirety of it entire season yeah if he goes down and when I look at the options Carlos Del Ria Wilson Michael Johnson Jr is thrown one pass and a a true freshman Jakari Williams and I don't think this team's a bold team if one of those three is playing that's fair that that's how important this backup quarterback situation is now that's a good weakness to have if your weakness is your backup quarterback and not anywhere really in the starting 22 then I would say that's fine that's totally fair you just gotta hope that mcord we just gotta hope he doesn't roll an ankle or something listen I'm a Jets Manan I'm starred right Aaron roders you know we didn't have a backup plan it was Aaron Rogers for the whole year last year if he goes down like he went down in four plays then I know that was Z Wilson again like yeah there was no backup plan Tim boy so I wish the team had a better backup option but it's not gonna matter if Kyle McCord stays healthy Andor plays well sure because the only two outcomes he wouldn't yeah and I was just looking up while you were talking it looks like Carlos threw about 50 passes last year so I mean you know take it what and what was his completion rate probably around 50% right the top of my head let's see it looks like it was 51% I I know my numbers that's impressive yeah so I I mean he can not impressive for a completion rate no I was saying that's impressive that you remembered that okay no 51% is not super good um like Neil you know football you know 50% he he can throw it he can sling the ball um but you know just a question of accuracy consistency reps and all that but everything you're saying is all legitimate it's all fair let's just you know keep our fingers crossed here y we're going to cross our fingers uh let's now transition over to the best and worst position groups on the team so let's start off with the best Neil in your opinion what's the best position group on this team I think I mean well i' I'd say the receiver room but I guess that can be broken up into into tight ends and more traditional wide receivers and you know the tight end group has gotten a ton of you know positive you know praise from pundits out there because it's it's got some really good players and it's really deep um obviously it starts with Aron Gatson the second who was as we all know was injured for much of last year but before that was an all ACC first team performer and coming into last year he was an All-American candidate uh assuming he's good to go and by all accounts he is he will lead that position group and he's really good um but then you got Dan valari who was like became a just a huge fan favorite last year for his toughness and doing the Wildcat and he he can catch passes he's a good blocker and all that um but they got other guys they got mang they got um I'm really high like if we talk about incoming freshman I'm really one of the guys I'm highest on is Jamie Trimble yeah I believe is the I don't know if it's either him or marcelus Barnes are the highest rated you know 2024 it's actually it depends on the service or King Joseph Edwards you know I think on 247 Sports it's actually Emanuel Ross Ross is really high up there on I think on three whatever we're five four star recruits and depending on what service who use is a fourar on Rivals yeah and exactly so but but if you know again if we're talking about tight ends I I think Jam's I don't know how many reps he's going to get this year given the depth and he's obviously an incoming freshman but I think he's going to be really good so the tight ends and if you combin it with the receivers oh yeah that's that's looking delicious to me um but if you're separating those i' go tight ends and I think the secondary is going to be fabulous this year just the the you know defensive backs as a whole it's just yes obviously led by Justin Baron but then you've got you got Deuce you got Devin Grant you got other guys as well I think it's going to be really good I do I do what about you what do you think so I also agree with you on the tight ends I'm going to because I consider gadston a tight end because I I know people say he's a receiver he's a tight end well what's he listed He's listed as a tight end I'm gonna I'm gonna consider him a tight end until that changes absolutely you got gadston who is not only their best player like he he's definitely their best player he's also their best NFL draft prospect and there is a difference between the two there is a difference between NFL prospect and best players in college there's a correlation but there is a difference I think Dan valari if he was the starter we would be more than happy with that absolutely and he's the backup he's the backup and with those two leading the way and you got Max M as a as a blocking tight end he can come in on situations near the right he's solid he's Sol he's fine like especially for a third string tight end you can do a whole lot worse than Max m oh I'm also not going to freak out about a third string tight end here um and then you mentioned Jamie tremble and I obviously have high hopes for him too but I think this unit is so strong to the point where where he doesn't need to see the field he he doesn't he might not I mean or or he might if they're in games where let's hope they're blowing people out not getting blown out yeah I agree I agree I think it would be wise if he were to wrch her I mean I'm sure the the coaching staff and everything's going to figure that out but you got gadon you got valari you got mang so what what about TR you can only have 11 players on the field five of them are going to be offensive lineman you got a quarterback and you're probably going to have a running back too so now you're down to four and you're gonna have a couple receivers on the field at least you can only have so many people so right I don't know tremble is really gonna play much but at the same time I don't think that's a bad that's actually a good thing you know true freshmen aren't really supposed to play all that lot I mean I think it'd be like a quote unquote good problem to have so to speak if the team's playing well and the veteran guys are leading the charge and if he's getting some reps you know when games are you know there's a big margin you know late in the game or whatever yeah I don't I don't think it'd be the end of the world absolutely not no I agree with you about the tight end I think the running back room is really nice too I do yeah I think it's good they got two quality backups there and by the way for those that might be saying how can you not play tremble uh Marvin Harrison red shirted at Ohio State like even the best players in the country the best recruits in the country will not typ in their this ain't basketball football is different you usually will even the five stars red shirt in football absolutely even the fives yeah uh so I think that's good for the best position group we're both kind of in agreement it's typically on the offense for them I think their offense is slightly better than their defense although I do agree with you with the DBS they're good too uh what do you think the worst position group is man I hate this question I know nobody wants it but we have it's a good topic I mean we can't always you know lay the pom poms out we got to say what are what we have to look at the team and say what do you think the strengths are and what do you think the weaknesses are we're trying to be at least a little bit objective okay so like if we can since you know I'm a words guy um if we can like move away from worst and say like position group that kind of watching the most closely to see how they fair so to speak something like that is that okay anyway fine you want to rephrase it but you get the idea yeah what's the one that you're a little bit concerned about I think the the the three main position groups that I'm kind of looking at the most closely to see how they farare along your theme would be both offensive and defensive lines as well as special teams and that doesn't necessarily mean I think they're bad but like something has to be better than something else so yep that's what it is it's not necessarily calling them the worst really yeah exact so you know that what what we're what we're looking out for so I'll just give quick thoughts on each so on the offensive line it's been well documented that in recent years the offensive line has had its ups and downs uh for various reasons depth injuries just not executing I think the offensive line this year is going to be better than in years past I think there's more depth from a numbers perspective and again we just have to look at how guys are performing and also you know do we get the injury bug I hope we don't on the defensive line as as you know we just you know we lost the guy the other day yeah went down with that's not that's horrible horrible I mean just sending career ending too that's awful yeah because he's I believe he's a red shirt senior so you know sending Positive Vibes to him that's just awful so you know we'll see how that affects the depth there although I'll tell you on the edge man one of my three or four favorite players ahead of the the season is is Diggs I think that dude is just going to be an absolute Beast absolute beast but so I'd say on the defensive line especially with the Ingram news let's see how that affects the depth um and then in terms of special teams um you know Peña was in I think he did he play in one game last year played in one game and that was it right right and you know he's again assuming kind of like with Gatson or some other guys assuming he's fully healthy that dude is is a lethal use the word weapon he from both a receiver standpoint in as a return man can can really do some damage and he was on named to a couple of watch lists including one today with Gatson comeback player of the year and I mean those preseason watch lists have I would also keep keep an eye on Malachi James the true freshman running back that dude is if he's gonna play he's he's not really gonna see the field much as a running back but if he's gonna play it's gonna be as a special teamer and that guy I know we always say he has track speed but a lot of these guys have track speed a lot of them do because they're just such great athletes they run fast no no no what I said on the podcast yesterday about him is that no no no like he has like real real tracks track athlete of the year in New Jersey right yeah oh yeah he's real that's not blowing smoke that dude can run yeah they can all run they're all division but I mean I like I follow his stuff on Twitter or X or whatever and I see you know he's competing and stuff and he's just crushing and yeah he's that dude is really fast um so we'll see what what kind of what kind of um you know um game time he gets but you know p p is healthy that obviously with the return game that's great and then you know hopefully the you know both the the place kicking and the punting you know is is is solid so we'll see I'm not saying it's not going to be but I just I don't I'm not it's I'm not as certain so to speak on how excellent or not excellent the Special Teams is going to be um and they have a you know but they got a lot of new great assistants you know this year here and and um we'll see but if I had to look at three position groups where I'm most concerned I hate using that word yeah but I I would say the lines and the Special Teams I'm gonna say most concerned about the defensive line because when I look at the offensive line I think it can be mitigated simply by the fact that if McCord gets rid of the ball fast then it like a lot of times I put the blame on the quarterback to it too long you got to get rid of the ball you got to make a decision quickly if the ball is not out of your hands in in two and a half seconds or less like that that's on that's not on the offensive line if they can hold up for a couple seconds you got to get rid of the ball period in the story that's fair so if you can just hold for a not actually hold like we don't want penalty Flags here but if you can yes keep them at Bay for a couple seconds they'll be fine if mcor is just getting rid of the ball and I look at the special team pñ is coming back you got Malachi James they do have a really good punter in Jack Stonehouse ston is good you know Denberg is a guy who who I'm kind of concerned about as a kicker but I mean we're talking about Specialists as a whole so you got good returners you got a good punter let's just hope the kicker's okay sure sure sure defensive line they got Fidel Diggs and then not not sure how the other guys are going to play I'm not really sure and it just took a hit with brillan Ingram going down I know bran Ingram is really more of a depth option but that you need depth you need players and that's another player that just went down yeah especially because if if I'm understanding things correctly aren't they in their defensive schemes under Robinson going to 42 yeah look at a they're not like officially saying their schemes but I mean we're just assuming 425 with Robinson because that's what he's run in the past right 42 obviously have another lineman added in and and you know moved up from linebacker and obviously we all know that Marlo wax is probably going to be a beast this year so I'm not too worried about theine oh yeah linebackers they're fine they got wax they got McDonald they got they got all those guys thank you for making locked on Syracuse your first listen today now go check out the locked on college football podcast from nil deals to NeverEnding conference realignment rumors Spencer mcclin gets you ready for an exciting season on the grid iron you can find the link to lockon college football in the description so you don't need to search part of the lockon 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