Spring Season Could Mean Loss Of Top Players
Now that the scheduled start of the college football season is less than two months away, there are still more questions than answers regarding what a season might look like. If there is any season at all.
Some analysts, as well as Oklahoma head coach Lincoln Riley, have advocated for the season to be pushed back to the spring. Doing so however, would come with some obvious pitfalls.
First and foremost, how would a move to the spring affect players who are eligible for next April's NFL Draft. With the NFL seemingly unwilling to push the draft back, that would mean some of the sport's best players would have a tough choice to make, including a number of players on the Clemson roster.
Number one on that list of guys would be quarterback Trevor Lawrence. Seeing as he is already considered a favorite to be the number-one overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, would Lawrence choose to risk his future for one more season of college football, or would he choose to go ahead and start preparing for his professional career.
Lawrence has nothing left to prove at the collegiate level. Considered one of the best quarterback prospects ever, he is 25-1 as a starter for the Tigers and has led his team to the national title game in each of his two seasons, winning one as a freshman.
Lawrence isn't the only skill position player a spring season could have an impact on. Running back Travis Etienne, who decided to put his NFL career on hold for a year in favor of playing his senior season, is another player the Tigers could potentially be without if the season is played in the spring.
A big part of Etienne deciding to return was to improve his draft stock. It would be a cruel twist of fate if he were to never even get that chance.
Other notable juniors besides Lawrence who could find themselves faced with similar decisions are Xavier Thomas and Jackson Carman. Both are guys many have assumed were locks to leave school early in order to turn pro.
Despite having only played two seasons, both could still hear their names called fairly quickly in next year's draft. Early mock drafts have both going as early as the first round.
While it appears a number of scenarios are still on the table regarding the 2020 season, it appears that a move to the spring is closer to the bottom of the list of options than the top. If it does eventually come to that however, it is very likely that the Tigers will be missing some of their top stars.
