South SFV Today

Stanford secured its first Atlantic Coast Conference victory on Friday night, defeating Syracuse 26-24 with a last-second field goal by Emmet Kenney. The 39-yard kick sealed the win as time expired.

Kyle McCord's 13-yard pass to Jackson Meeks had given Syracuse a 24-23 lead with just over three minutes remaining. However, Stanford's Ashton Daniels led a drive down the field that set up Kenney’s decisive field goal.

Kenney also contributed earlier in the game with field goals from 38, 51, and 35 yards. A significant play came when Stanford safety Mitch Leigber intercepted a pass from McCord intended for Dan Villari at the Stanford 29-yard line and returned it for a touchdown. This play extended Stanford's lead to 20-10 late in the third quarter.

McCord responded with a one-yard touchdown run after a 19-yard scramble, narrowing the gap to 20-17. Daniels completed 23 of his 38 passes for 178 yards and connected with Elic Ayomanor for a touchdown. Ayomanor recorded seven receptions totaling 87 yards.

Despite McCord throwing for an impressive 339 yards on 27 completions out of 42 attempts, he was intercepted twice and sacked four times. These turnovers resulted in ten points for Stanford.

Syracuse struggled on the ground, managing only 26 rushing yards. Their leading rusher, LeQuint Allen, was held to just eight carries for 25 yards. Trebor Pena led Syracuse receivers with ten catches for 101 yards.

Stanford will continue their road trip with a game against Clemson on September 28.

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