With Garrett Shrader’s career at Syracuse ending after last season, a new starter was needed. The transfer portal produced one quickly, as Ohio State quarterback Kyle McCord leaned on his long-time relationship with Fran Brown and joined the Orange.
McCord started all 12 regular season games last year for the Buckeyes, and earned Third Team All-Big Ten honors after throwing for 3,170 yards and 24 touchdowns against a mere six interceptions.
Named to the preseason watch lists for the Maxwell Award and the Walter Camp Award, which are both given to the national player of the year award, as well as the Davey O’Brien Award for the best collegiate quarterback, McCord has already been a strong presence both on and off the field for SU.
An accurate passer, McCord is more likely to stay in the pocket than race around the field, but the skill position talent around him on the field should create opportunities downfield for him similar to those he tried to exploit in the spring game.
Last season’s second-stringer, Carlos Del Rio-Wilson, has appeared in 14 games over the last two seasons at Syracuse, including a pair of starts. Del Rio-Wilson is an excellent athlete with a powerful arm, but has shown inconsistency with his accuracy.
Del Rio-Wilson has ripped off six double-digit yardage gains with his legs in his limited playing time, but completed just over 47 percent of his 102 pass attempts for the Orange with eight interceptions and four scores. Four of those picks came in his lone start against Boston College last year, but Del Rio-Wilson did pick up 67 yards and a touchdown on the ground.
That second-string spot is not locked down this year, however, as Michael Johnson Jr., the son of SU’s tight ends coach Mike Johnson and a transfer from Florida Atlantic, has made some waves in fall camp. A redshirt senior, Johnson came out of high school as a dual-threat quarterback, but never found his footing at either Penn State or Florida Atlantic until last season when he played as a rushing quarterback, picking up 140 yards and seven scores on the ground while attempting just one pass.
Braden Davis, who played some at quarterback late last season after the Shrader injury, played some wide receiver as well and is now listed at that position by the athletic department website. Incoming freshman Jakhari Williams, a three-star recruit from Macon, Georgia who was ranked among the top 50 quarterbacks nationally by several services, is a dual-threat signal-caller and has pushed for backup opportunities during the preseason camp and scrimmages.
LEADING RETURNING PASSER: Carlos Del Rio-Wilson – 282 yards on 26 completions in 51 attempts with three touchdowns and six interceptions
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