Travis Dye Still Undecided on NFL Draft Decision as Regular Season Winds Down

The Oregon running back will be faced with the decision of pursuing the NFL or returning for a fifth season.

Author:
John Rustik
Publish date:
Nov 24, 2021 1:36 PM EST

The Ducks return home to Eugene for the final time this season to take on the Oregon State Beavers in a rivalry matchup with the Pac-12 North on the line. With this being the final home game of the season, it's also an opportunity to honor the seniors leaving the program.

While this honor is mostly reserved for seniors, due to the pandemic there might be some juniors that join in on the celebrations. One player that hasn’t given a solidified answer is junior running back Travis Dye.

While Dye is technically a junior this season, like everyone else he was granted an extra year of eligibility due to the pandemic year. As a result, if he returned next season he would essentially be a fifth-year senior.

Dye didn't give a solid answer as to whether or not he will walk during the senior day game against Oregon State.

“I haven’t decided, but I’m leaning on – I’m probably not going to,” he said on Tuesday. “It's senior day. It’s important for the seniors to get their shine, their recognition. I don’t want to take anything away from them.”

He also added that his decision was “still to come”.

Dye has fueled the Oregon offense all year. Through 11 games, he's racked up 937 yards on the ground, running between the tackles, slicing through defenses with quick cuts, and spinning around would-be tacklers. With one more conference game to go, it wouldn’t be a surprise to if Dye broke the 1,000 yard-mark for the first time in his career.

He also has a team-leading 12 rushing touchdowns, four of which came when he set the NCAA record for most consecutive touchdown carries against UCLA.

He also has the most receptions on the team with 33, which he's turned into 308 receiving yards and two touchdowns.

The Ducks would love to see Dye back, but should he decide to pursue the NFL with fellow running back CJ Verdell, they're loaded with talent that for them to pass the torch too. The running back room features numerous players that were high-profile recruits coming out of the high school ranks, with players like freshman Byron Cardwell, who's emerged this season to the tune of 355 rushing and three touchdowns on 48 carries. Fellow freshmen Trey Benson and Seven McGee will also be back, and you can't forget about Sean Dollars, who's working his way back from injury.

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