SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) — Emmet Kenney hit a 39-yard field goal as time expired to lift Stanford over Syracuse 26-24 on Friday night, giving the Cardinal their first Atlantic Coast Conference victory.
“I felt really confident out there mainly because I have the best snapper, holder and line blocking in the country,” Kenney said. “They did their job all night helping me do my job tonight. Once I saw it sail through it was like a dream come true.”
A 13-yard strike from Kyle McCord to Jackson Meeks gave Syracuse (2-1, 1-1 ACC) a 24-23 lead with 3:13 to go, but Ashton Daniels drove the Cardinal (2-1, 1-0) down the field for the winning score. A crucial 27-yard completion on fourth-and-9 to Elic Ayomanor kept the drive alive.
“This was something special for us, obviously, our first ACC game,” said Daniels. “That’s history for us, especially, and I’m not going to lie, we’ve been struggling the last two seasons. This was such a big win for us guys couldn’t control their emotions. The amount of trust and respect I have for my connection with Elic … I knew there was no one else I could go to.”
Kenney also had fields goals of 38, 51, and 35 yards.
Safety Mitch Leigber intercepted a McCord pass intended for Dan Villari at the Stanford 29-yard line and returned it for a score, giving the Cardinal a 20-10 lead with 4:16 to go in the third quarter. It was Stanford’s first pick-6 since September 2021. McCord ran 19 yards down the right side and leaped into the end zone from 1 yard out, pulling Syracuse to 20-17.
Daniels was 23-of-38 passing for 178 yards and a touchdown to Ayomanor, who had seven receptions for 87 yards.
McCord was 27 of 42 for 339 yards, but he was picked off twice leading to 10 Stanford points. He was also sacked four times — twice by David Bailey. Trebor Pena had 10 receptions for 101 yards.
“The first (interception) was a miscommunication with Dan, but I take fault because I can’t throw it if Dan hasn’t turned around,” McCord said. “The second was just dumb.”
Syracuse coach Fran Brown defended his quarterback, saying McCord drove the Orange down the field for a potential game-winning drive.
“He gave us an opportunity to win, that’s all you can ask,” Brown said. “Did he throw it to the other team? Yeah. But that’s football. You can’t pass for 500 yards every game.”
The Cardinal defense held LeQuint Allen, Syracuse’s leading rusher, to 25 yards on eight carries. Syracuse gained just 26 yards on the ground. The Cardinal held Cal Poly to 25 yards on the ground in their other victory.
“The defense has been much more aggressive the last two weeks,” Stanford coach Troy Taylor said.
LIMITING GADSDEN
Syracuse tight end Oronde Gadsden II, who had 13 catches entering the game, had just two.
THE TAKEAWAY
This was a huge win for the Cardinal, who dominated the Orange in the first half, and showed they will be tough to handle.
It’s back to the drawing board for Syracuse, which seemed out of whack for much of the game. There was no running game and McCord seemed flustered for the first time in his brief Syracuse career.
UP NEXT
Stanford: The Cardinal play their second straight road game — against Clemson on Sept. 28.
Syracuse: The Orange host Holy Cross on Sept. 28 in the final of four straight home games to start the 2024 season.
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