Photo Credit: Nicole Noel Photography
SAN DIEGO - In a record-setting offensive showcase, the No. 21 ranked Syracuse Orange capped its first season under head coach Fran Brown with a 52-35 victory over the Washington State Cougars in the DirecTV Holiday Bowl at Snapdragon Stadium on Friday night.
Senior quarterback Kyle McCord threw for 453 yards and five touchdowns, breaking Deshaun Watson's ACC single-season record for most passing yards. The Orange (10-3) reached 10 wins for just the eighth time in program history.
"The 10 wins show that we are becoming a successful program and we have to continue to work," said Brown. "This is just a standard that was set, and we want to go above and beyond."
LeQuint Allen starred for Syracuse with 165 total yards and three touchdowns, while Darrell Gill Jr. added 145 receiving yards. The Orange offense amassed 606 total yards and set a new team record for most points scored in a bowl game.
For Washington State (8-5), the game represented more than just the final score. Playing with a depleted roster following recent program changes, the Cougars showed resilience behind senior receiver Kyle Williams, who put up a Holiday Bowl record 172 yards on 10 catches, including a 66-yard touchdown catch from quarterback Zevi Eckhaus in the first quarter.
Williams learned after the game that he had broken Oklahoma State star Dez Bryant's Holiday Bowl receiving yards record.
"Honestly it's amazing," Williams said. "Every game I come and try to put on a show and try to do the most that I can. But to beat a receiver that's an all-time great like that, it's just an honor and it shows that all of the work I put in, it wasn't for nothing."
"I'm grateful I could do that, but I wouldn't have got it without this gunslinger," he added, referring to Eckhaus, who threw for 363 yards and three touchdowns.
"When you're out there between the white lines, you're not thinking about anything else," Williams added. "Out there, that's our sanctuary."
Washington State interim head coach Pete Kaligis was emotional while praising his team's effort.
"They fought and I'm so proud of them," he said. "The one thing I do know is that love never fails."
Syracuse took control in the second quarter, outscoring WSU 21-0 to build a 35-21 halftime lead. McCord connected with Trebor Pena and Oronde Gadsden II for three touchdown passes during that span.
"To be sitting here and have that record now, it's crazy to see how everything comes full circle," McCord said of breaking the ACC passing record. "The first day I got in, Coach was sitting in my living room telling me that's exactly how it would go."
The victory marked Syracuse's third win on the West Coast this season and set a new standard for Brown's program moving forward.
Despite the loss, Washington State's resolve didn't go unnoticed.
"I know it's a little doom and gloom for the Cougs right now, but there are sunny days coming," said WSU linebacker Kyle Thornton in his final collegiate game. "There's something special here in Pullman and in the Cougs that's not going anywhere."
Local contributors for Washington State included redshirt junior receiver Josh Meredith (Helix/Mater Dei Catholic), who made an impact on both offense and special teams. Meredith had five receptions for 30 yards and provided a spark with a 12-yard blocked punt return for a touchdown in the first quarter that gave WSU a 21-14 lead.
Redshirt senior kicker Dean Janikowski (Cathedral Catholic) was perfect on extra points, going 5-for-5, but struggled with field goals, missing attempts from 41 and 37 yards in the second half.
Senior edge rusher Quinn Roff (San Marcos) recorded two tackles and a sack that forced a Syracuse field goal attempt in the fourth quarter.
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