Spring Football Notebook 2024: 1st look at McCord, Gadsden returns

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Out was the bullhorn from last season’s outdoor fall camp. In was the microphone and speakers Fran Brown used as his players warmed up inside the Ensley Athletic Center at Syracuse football’s first day of spring ball.

Brown, wearing a backward Gait lacrosse hat, sprinted around the indoor turf field, mainly working the defensive backs, but also hovering around the rest. He mentioned the adjustment coming from being a defensive position coach to the head of a Power 5 program by being ready to pre-plan. He and his staff recently had to change the logistics of practice but were able to because of preparation.

As it pertains to the side of the ball he hasn’t coached, Brown said he’s gotten to see the offensive players already move into position, pleasing him. He’s making sure to see the game from both sides of the ball now.

“I know where to look at now in practice to see if this kid will be able to make the play,” Brown said.

The new head coach is just one of many new and returning faces heading the program, including a new defensive coordinator, strength and conditioning staff, pass rushers and receivers. Some players had changed numbers like Jayden Bellamy getting No. 1 and Duce Chestnut with No. 0.

Here are some more observations from the first day of spring ball for SU football:

New No. 6

The biggest new on-field contributor undoubtedly came at the quarterback position. During the stretch lines, all of the Syracuse offensive players were lined up based on the position they played and the spot on the depth chart they held. At the front of the line for quarterbacks was Kyle McCord, the Ohio State transfer who now replaces Garrett Shrader.

Tight end Oronde Gadsden II, who spoke to reporters for the first time since his Lisfranc injury last September, said McCord zips the ball a little faster than Shrader did. But Brown said McCord has been able to step in as the leader by being himself. And with the receiving options McCord will have, Brown said there will be fun, but McCord will have to be the leader.

“Just being able to forget things because that’s football. The monotony of football goes up and down throughout the whole time,” Brown said. “And just being able to go with the flow of the game and being able to keep everybody’s composure at a certain level.”

An evolving receiver room

For a position group that had struggled to stay healthy or consistent, Syracuse’s wide receivers got a bit of a roster makeover via the transfer portal. Former Georgia wide receivers Jackson Meeks and Zeed Haynes both transferred to SU and immediately became top targets for the quarterbacks.

Haynes caught passes on deep post routes but also excelled on short breaking in routes.

“I’ve been on the field with him, so I haven’t really seen him at the same time as me,” Gadsden said. “But from what I’m seeing, Zeed caught a touchdown at the end of practice. Meeks, I don’t think he lost the rep all day. So (it’s) looking like we’re gonna be dangerous.”

But while Haynes and Meeks were standouts early on, the position group was now without Damien Alford, who was dismissed back in February. In deleted posts, Alford says he learned of his dismissal via social media.

Brown was asked about the dismissal for the first time since it happened and said Alford needed to do what was best for him to be successful. He said the dismissal was a “mutual agreement” that was the best thing for Alford.

“He just wanted to change,” Brown said. “It had nothing to do with the teammates or the people. He was happy with the quarterback that was there.”

Gadsden’s return

Like how McCord was at the front of the quarterback stretch line, so too was Gadsden for the tight ends, placed right in front of Dan Villari, who became an offensive focal point during the latter stretch of the 2023 season.

While Gadsden caught passes from McCord, Braden Davis and Carlos Del Rio-Wilson, he said he needed a couple more practices to get back into a rhythm with the signal callers. Gadsden worked on running routes that directed him to the middle of the field and deep down the field. Gadsden said he’s not at “100%” yet, but his goal will be to duplicate what he did two years ago. Or even better than that.

“I still have some more things and procedures I gotta go through,” Gadsden said. “And that’ll be coming up in the next month or two to get back to 100%.”