3 Syracuse football newcomers who'll have the biggest impacts in 2024

Syracuse football needed a program rejuvenation and they instantly got one after hiring Fran Brown as head coach this past November. The former Georgia defensive backs coach already made a huge splash in his short time under the helm, showing early signs that he is ready to transform a program that has gone 24-37 since 2019.

It only took Brown -- a renowned recruiter apart of the Kirby Smart coaching tree -- six months to give the Orange the 25th-best transfer portal class in the country and 11th-best high school recruiting class in the 2025 cycle, per 247Sports. Additionally, Brown recently signed linebacker Izayia Williams and safety Demetres Samuel Jr. -- two Florida natives in the class of 2026 -- who are both now Syracuse’s two highest-rated recruits in the past quarter century.

What this leaves is a trail of optimism that Syracuse fans have not been accustomed to in quite some time. But what about the newcomers this season?

Below are the three most notable additions to the program this past offseason who are projected to play a huge role in 2024.

1. Kyle McCord, QB

The obvious top newcomer of the 2024 offseason for the Orange. Syracuse has had talented, athletic quarterbacks in the recent past the likes of Eric Dungey and Garrett Schrader, but none possess as much immediate upside, especially in the passing game, as the former five-star recruit. 

Kyle McCord salvaged a solid junior campaign at Ohio State, throwing for 3,170 yards behind a 4-to-1 touchdown-to-interception ratio as the starting signal caller for one of the nation’s top teams. 

Clearly the talent level that McCord will be surrounded with will not be as elite, yet with the return of second-team All-ACC running back LeQuint Allen, elite pass-catching tight end Oronde Gadsden II, and a rebuilt offensive line, the team is built around him being the catalyst for the offense.