Syracuse, N.Y. -- The NCAA Eligibility Center has cleared Class of 2019 Syracuse basketball recruit Quincy Guerrier to play as a college freshman.

“I’m really excited about it,” he said today by phone. “I can’t wait.”

Guerrier, the 6-foot-7 wing from Montreal, needed to complete coursework for one class the NCAA deemed necessary for him to enroll in college and compete as a freshman. He did that, his Thetford Academy coach Ibrahim Appiah said. And last week, after submitting his high school transcripts for NCAA scrutiny, he learned he had qualified to play his initial year at SU.

“That was the big thing,” Appiah said, “that we get that OK from the NCAA so we can follow up on the other stuff. The other stuff we shouldn’t really have an issue with. The biggest piece was for them to clear him. Just to get that OK was major news.”

Guerrier has spent the past few months “taking care of that class," working out daily and shuttling between his home in Montreal and his school in Thetford Mines, located about two hours away. He did not play basketball for Thetford this season. He had hoped to arrive on the Syracuse campus by January, but after initially submitting a translated transcript (French is Guerrier’s primary language) to the NCAA, he learned he needed one additional class to qualify.

He is now sorting out legal paperwork and procedures to get to Syracuse.

Thetford Academy coach Ibrahim Appiah (left) and Syracuse basketball recruit Quincy Guerrier pose in the gym on a December morning. Dec. 12, 2018

As a Canadian citizen, Guerrier needs to secure his I-20 from Syracuse, which would allow him to get a student visa to study and play at SU. Appiah hopes to have all the paperwork completed in time for Guerrier to enroll at SU for its Maymester, which begins May 13 and runs to May 24. If the timing doesn’t work, he expects Guerrier to arrive in Syracuse for the following summer sessions.

It’s been a trying few months.

“It’s been stressful for him and for me as well just because I know how much he loves Syracuse and how much he wants to be there,” Appiah said. “Him not being there in January was heavy on him. It was just trying to keep him focused, saying ‘just because you’re not there in January, you’re going to be there in a few months, so just stay on course.' As soon as he got the clear it just took a whole lot of weight off his shoulders. For him it was ‘now I can determine when I’ll be on campus vs. wait, wait, wait and not even know for sure whether I’ll be on campus or not.’"

“When I found out it was just a really heavy weight off me now I know that everything is set," Guerrier said.

Guerrier is a dynamic scorer who considers his 3-point shooting stroke his best offensive attribute, but he can attack the basket and is a physically imposing presence on the court. He completes a large SU recruiting class that includes John Bol Ajak, a 6-9 forward/center from Westtown School in West Chester, Pa.; Brycen Goodine, a 6-3 guard at St. Andrew’s in Barrington, R.I.; Joe Girard III, a 6-2 guard from Glens Falls; and Jesse Edwards, a 6-11 center from IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla. (via the Netherlands).