Kyle McCord passes for 4 TDs as Syracuse knocks off newly ranked No. 23 Georgia Tech 31-28

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) — Future opponents of Syracuse football might want to take seriously a message delivered from first-year coach Fran Brown.

Don't give him any bulletin board material because it may bite you.

Kyle McCord passed for 381 yards and four touchdowns, two each to Trebor Pena and Oronde Gadsden II, and Syracuse held on to knock off newly ranked No. 23 Georgia Tech on Saturday.

Earlier in the week, Georgia Tech coach Brent Key said his team's matchup against the Orange “wasn't about Xs and Os” but rather being physical against Syracuse. Brown took that as a swipe at his program being soft.

“I took it personal when he said it wasn't about Xs and Os,” Brown said. “It was about coming up here and being physical and tough for four hours. We’re from the Northeast. What you mean by that? Like we’re not physical and tough? ... Syracuse has been physical forever. I want to make sure that will never be said about us. We’re not soft. That bothered me.

“I’ve coached with (Georgia coach) Kirby Smart and (former Georgia co-defensive coordinator) Will Muschamp. That’s what they do. Why would we not be a tough physical football team?," Brown added. "I want to make sure everyone understands that. When you play us, just be quiet. Don’t give no ammo to me. You give ammo to me, I’m coming at you full tilt.”

The Yellow Jackets (2-1, 1-1 ACC), ranked in the AP Top 25 last week for the first time since 2015, cut the lead to three with 2:31 to go on a 15-yard scoring run by Jamal Haynes.

The Orange made sure Georgia Tech never got the ball back, running out the clock for their first win against a ranked opponent since October 2022 against North Carolina State.

“We knew they were a physical team and (thought) we could control that. At times today it showed that we were really not, and that came down to physicality,” Key said.

McCord was 32-of-46 passing, with career highs in attempts and completions. Gadsden had six catches for 93 yards. Pena has five touchdowns on the young season.

Syracuse (2-0, 1-0 ACC) accumulated 515 yards in total offense.

Not known for his running ability, McCord scrambled for 16 yards on a third-and-3, the longest run of his career, and his emotions took over after that play.

“That was a big point of the game. The spike? I probably need to reel the emotions in a bit," he said.

Haynes King was 28-of-38 for 259 yards for Georgia Tech. He passed for one score and ran for two.

King escaped the grasp of linebacker Derek McDonald and scrambled 21 yards for his first score. He faked a pitch and scored from 26 yards out to get Georgia Tech to 21-14 with 4:39 to go in the first half.

The Orange defense held Haynes, the Yellow Jackets' leading rusher, to just 35 yards on 11 carries. He had averaged 5.7 yards a carry entering the game.

“He (Brown) just kept playing that clip (Key clip) over and over and over and over at practice, throughout the week,” Syracuse edge rusher Fadil Diggs said. “He just wanted to get it through our head and it looked like we were the more physical team.”

Georgia Tech: The Yellow Jackets need to have their running game rolling to give the dual-threat King more help. The Orange clamped down on that.

Syracuse: Brown said his team needed to get more physical after their season-opening win against Ohio. His players must have heard him, holding the Yellow Jackets to 112 yards rushing.

Georgia Tech will likely fall from the rankings.

Syracuse has some work to do on its special teams. Georgia Tech blocked a field goal, a punt and recovered an onside kick.

The jersey of former Syracuse defensive end Dwight Freeney, recently inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, was lifted to the rafters during halftime ceremonies.

Georgia Tech: The Yellow Jackets return home to face VMI next Saturday.

Syracuse: The Orange have a week off before another early-season conference game Sept. 20 against Stanford.

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Georgia Tech defensive back Ahmari Harvey, top, breaks up a pass intended for Syracuse wide receiver Zeed Haynes during the first half of an NCAA football game on Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024 in Syracuse, N.Y. (AP Photo/Hans Pennink)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — The Carolina Panthers have decided to bench 2023 No. 1 overall pick Bryce Young after the second-year quarterback's rough start to the season, according to a person with knowledge of the situation.

The person spoke on condition of anonymity to The Associated Press on Monday because head coach Dave Canales has not yet addressed the situation.

Andy Dalton would take over as the starter for Carolina's next game on Sunday at Las Vegas.

Young has completed just 31 of 56 passes for 244 yards with three interceptions as the Panthers have started 0-2 this season and been outscored 73-13 by the New Orleans Saints and Los Angeles Chargers. Young has run for one touchdown, the only one of the season for Carolina.

Young is 2-16 as a starter since the Panthers traded up eight spots in the NFL draft in 2023 to get him. The Panthers made a significant investment in that deal with Chicago, sending wide receiver D.J. Moore and four draft picks to the Bears — one of which turned out to be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft after the Panthers finished a league-worst 2-15 last season.

Canales is expected to address reporters about the decision Monday.

Canales had said after Sunday’s 26-3 loss to the Chargers that Young would remain his starter.

But that changed on Monday.

Young hasn’t looked much like a No. 1 overall pick since his arrival, continually looking flustered in the pocket and often making poor decisions and throwing into double coverage.

He becomes the first quarterback selected No. 1 overall in the common draft era starting in 1967 to be benched for non-injury reasons in his second season.

His first throw this season was an interception against the Saints in the opener and things only seem to have gotten worse.

Young was booed repeatedly by the home crowd on Sunday after the offense stalled time and time again.

Carolina was 1 of 12 on third down conversions and the Panthers were outgained 349-159.

When asked about his confidence after the game, Young said, “I draw my confidence from the Lord. I’m very blessed. I’m grateful for this challenge. Not an ideal start, but God does everything for a reason. I have faith in that.”

Young said he needed to do a better job with his decision-making.

“You always want to make a play. You want to do something,” Young said. “Obviously, part of the position is being the game manager. Some bad instances of that on film today. I definitely take accountability for that.”

Dalton is 83-78-2 as a starting quarterback in the NFL, including one last season with the Panthers. He has thrown 246 touchdown passes and 144 interceptions since coming into the league in 2011 with Cincinnati.

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Carolina Panthers head coach Dave Canales right talks to quarterback Bryce Young (9) during the second half of an NFL football game against the New Orleans Saints, Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024, in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Matthew Hinton)

Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young passes against the Los Angeles Chargers during the first half of an NFL football game on Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Rusty Jones)