Syracuse, N.Y. — Kyle McCord says he’s off to the NFL.

McCord was long presumed to be on a one-year deal in Syracuse after transferring in from Ohio State, until it became known late last month he petitioned the NCAA for another season of eligibility.

McCord told ESPN on Friday he is ending that pursuit of an extra year of eligibility and is satisfied with the feedback he’s received from NFL scouts to head to the pros.

The decision allows Syracuse to resume building its 2025 roster knowing the state of its quarterback room and, perhaps, the amount of money it can allocate to other players now that one of the team’s highest-paid players is coming off the books.

On the field, McCord’s departure leaves the Orange with a bevy of inexperienced options on the active roster to face what looks like a daunting lineup of opponents, beginning with Tennessee on Aug. 30 in Atlanta, right in the heart of SEC country.

The Orange is also scheduled to face Notre Dame, Clemson, Miami (Fla.), Southern Methodist and Georgia Tech on the road next season.

The challenging slate, combined with the expected loss of 17 key contributors off last year’s team (including three transfer departures in the secondary not listed on the end-of-season depth chart), will likely keep the Orange off the national radar heading into next season.

LSU-transfer quarterback Rickie Collins becomes perhaps the most intriguing quarterback entering spring ball.

Collins was a four-star prospect out high school who once intended to play under Jeff Brohm at Purdue before reopening his recruitment and enrolling with the hometown Tigers.

Collins, among the nation’s top quarterbacks coming out of high school, has thrown and completed just seven career passes for 38 yards in four games over two seasons at LSU.

Returning backup options Michael Johnson Jr., a seventh-year veteran, and redshirt freshman Jakhari Williams are familiar with offensive coordinator Jeff Nixon’s scheme.

True freshman Luke Carney enrolls this month and will practice this spring, and another freshman, Rich Belin, also signed to play at Syracuse next season.

No quarterback on the roster has started a game in college.

That’s a far cry from the credentials McCord carried a year ago after winning 11 of 12 starts for Ohio State, including a tough road win at Notre Dame.

McCord was nudged to move on following Ohio State’s loss to rival Michigan on the final weekend of the regular season. He entered the transfer portal and chose a coaching staff he was familiar with to play out his career.

The marriage favored both sides as the senior led the nation in passing, broke ACC and Syracuse school records and guided the Orange to a 10-3 record, the team’s best mark since 2018.

He said having such a strong season factored into his decision to head to the NFL.

McCord’s immediate focus turns toward the upcoming East-West Shrine Bowl, a postseason all-star game involving NFL prospects at the end of the month. That will be one of the key pre-draft showcase events McCord can use to bolster his draft stock.

The NFL draft will be held April 24-26.

McCord is well-positioned to become the first quarterback drafted out of Syracuse since Ryan Nassib was selected in the fourth round by the New York Giants in 2013.

McCord is part of a quarterback draft class that’s perceived by analysts as low on first-round grade talent. Miami’s Cam Ward and Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders are projected to be the first quarterbacks taken in the draft.

There’s no real consensus beyond those two, with Alabama’s Jalen Milroe and Oregon’s Dillon Gabriel among the other highly rated quarterbacks in the draft.

McCord is poised for a rise on teams’ draft boards if he can impress during the pre-draft process.

One day before McCord publicized his decision to commit to the draft, another highly rated QB prospect, Georgia’s Carson Beck, pulled his name from the draft. Beck will play at Miami next season.

Another top prospect, Texas’s Quinn Ewers, is reportedly fetching huge sums of money to remain in college for another season but hasn’t said what his plans are ahead of Friday night’s College Football Playoff semifinal against Ohio State.

McCord is one of several key contributors — and high-priced players — off SU’s 10-win team turning pro.

Running back LeQuint Allen and tight end Oronde Gadsden II are early draft entrants. Defensive leaders Alijah Clark, Fadil Diggs, Justin Barron and Marlowe Wax are also preparing for the next level.

Syracuse also lost two-year starting center J’Onre Reed to USC since the season ended two weeks ago, just one piece of an anticipated overhaul along the offensive line this offseason.

All that attrition would have left McCord surrounded by a new supporting cast, were he to return.

That’s not much of a concern anymore.

Syracuse has long planned for life after McCord.

It can now fully turn its focus toward acting on it.