Cal Football: Cornerback Camryn Bynum Flips on NFL Draft Exit - 'I'm Super-Excited'
UPDATED
Cornerback Camryn Bynum made his return to the Cal football team on Monday with a cryptic tweet that said, “A movie with no sequel? Never that!”
Cal subsequently re-tweeted Bynum's announcement with a more definitive, "He's back for 2020."
Talking with reporters on a Monday afternoon Zoom call and wearing a Cal T-shirt, Bynum said, "I'm super-excited."
Bynum announced back on Sept. 6 that he was opting out of his senior season in order to prepare for the 2021 NFL draft.
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Photo courtesy of Cal Athletics
His reason was simple and sound: The Pac-12 Conference on Aug. 11 had postponed the fall season until possibly the winter or spring and Bynum didn’t have confidence that would allow him to adequately pursue his personal dreams.
“If we were able to play in the fall, everything would have been normal,” Bynum said on the day he announced his exit. “With the whole pandemic (and the season) being pushed back, I thought I’d just bet on myself and start preparing for the draft.”
*** Bynum talks about his decision to opt back in for the 2020 Cal season:
But with the Pac-12’s decision on Sept. 24 to reinstate the fall schedule, Bynum’s reason for leaving is gone. And so the three-year starter will make it four years in a row.
It’s huge news for the Bears, who return virtually their entire offense intact and now have seven starters from their 2019 defense expected to be on board for the Nov. 7 opener at home against Washington.
He gives Cal a second experienced defensive back, joining Elijah Hicks, who is moving from cornerback to safety this season.
Bynum said he is now back on campus and began his one-week quarantine on Monday.
Cal is expected to begin its full training camp on Friday, but Bynum doesn't expect to join his teammates on the practice field until next Monday.
*** In the video below, Bynum discusses his re-entry plan to the Cal program:
Bynum’s teammates said in an interview with Cal Sports Report several weeks ago that he would be more than welcomed back, if he changed his mind.
“We would definitely get on the phone and call Cam and see if he wanted to play one last year in Memorial Stadium,” said quarterback Chase Garbers, who called Bynum “an NFL-level cornerback.”
*** Bynum talks about his teammates' reaction to his return to the team and his own excitement about having one more season with the Bears:
Bynum has started all 38 games the past three seasons and is on track to graduate in December with a degree in American Studies.
A redshirt senior from Corona, he was a second-team All-Pac-12 selection last season and one of the Bears’ team captains.
As a junior last fall, Bynum had 63 tackles and team bests of nine pass breakups and 10 passes defended. He had one interception in 2019 and has five in his Cal career.
He has been projected in NFL mock drafts to be selected anywhere from the third through sixth rounds.
Oregon cornerback Deommodore Lenoir also announced Monday he is opting back in after previously saying he was leaving school for the NFL.
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Follow Jeff Faraudo of Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jefffaraudo
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