How come our juniors left?

[petro]

Originally Posted by swampsupreme

I know a lot of kids are broke in college, i know a lot of them can't wait to be in the NFL, and a lot of them (jordan reed) don't like school.

I don't blame them.

But aside from floyd i felt all of our juniors should have stayed. None of them had high draft stock except elam.

Did they not beleive we could win it all next year?

Im just wondering why last year all of bamas players came back and ours didnt.

They left for the same reason they arrived.


I don't understand it though. When I was a junior Chemistry major, Dow-Corning offered my a $1MM signing bonus and 4 year guaranteed contract to develop non-stick food polymers at $3MM per year. I turned them down out of loyalty to the university. Then I lost my sight in a lab accident my senior year and have been living with my parents ever since. At least I was loyal though.

[Go2gtr]

Bama guys are leaving too.

[petro]

Originally Posted by Go2gtr

Bama guys are leaving to.

OMG! What about LSU?????????!!!! LSU is being DECIMATED by those damn capitalist underclassmen!!!!!

[grizgator]

To specifically address the question:

Floyd - was clearly ready to go to the next level. More risk to staying than going. Recall that Floyd was dirt poor. Remember last year when Muschamp said that Floyd had been sending his Pell Grant money to his grandmother (which he should not have said, since, by law, Pell Grant money is supposed to be used for educational purposes).

Elam - IMO, was clearly ready, although I sure wish he would have stayed.

Reed - IMO, could have helped himself athletically by staying. However, one of the Gainesville Sun writers noted that Reed was not a surprise because he hated school. Based on that, one could speculate that credit or grade issues could have threatened eligibility, but I'll just assume he didn't want to go to class any more and thinks he can make it in the NFL now.

Jenkins - this is the only one where there is no good explanation that I've heard. The guy had a lot of reasons to return to raise his stock, but didn't. Whether it was a school issue, a money issue, or something else, I haven't heard. Maybe we'll never know. But he's gone, so doesn't really matter.

With the way we're recruiting, this will not be the end of this. We should expect to see this more and more regularly.....kids either going pro or leaving (transferring) because they couldn't make the 2 deep. With all of the APR exceptions available, not much to prevent it.

[MtownGator]

Money and or no faith.

I wish after they have officially left that they tell why they left the team.

[g8rfan22]

They did their internships & now it's time to get paid!

[TheRaid]

Originally Posted by petro

They left for the same reason they arrived.

I don't understand it though. When I was a junior Chemistry major, Dow-Corning offered my a $1MM signing bonus and 4 year guaranteed contract to develop non-stick food polymers at $3MM per year. I turned them down out of loyalty to the university. Then I lost my sight in a lab accident my senior year and have been living with my parents ever since. At least I was loyal though.

Well, you should have taken out an insurance policy. That is what the smart ones do.

[KronoGator]

Originally Posted by MtownGator

Money and or no faith.

I wish after they have officially left that they tell why they left the team.

Their teammates know why, they would all go if they had the same opportunity.

[NoahBeanBizzel]

Originally Posted by oxymoron

I don't blame them for turning pro. Most of these guys are from poor families and there's no way they can delay making hundreds of thousands of dollars. Football is a dangerous sport and they could get injured and miss out.

True. We often hide behind the self-righteous justification that these guys aren't loyal. Or we say that they should get their degree. Another one we parrot around is that these guys should put the team first, come back, and help win a national championship. And it sure sounds good. Truth is, nobody cares about Reed, Jenkins, Floyd and Elam; we care about what they can do for Florida football. That's a big difference.

Does anybody remember Tyrone Prothro? How's he doing these days as a bank teller in Tuscaloosa? What, do they pay him 10.50 an hour to do that? He would've made more returning kicks for two years in the NFL than what he'll probably make over his entire life depositing checks for people.

For every poster who wants to talk about loyalty, I question who the first person will be to send Easley a check if his leg snaps apart. How many people in Tuscaloosa did that for Prothro? And I don't want to hear about an insurance policy; not when potentially millions of dollars-guaranteed-hang in the balance for something as simple as a signing bonus.

[Donzo]

Originally Posted by TheGator

Unless you are projected to be drafted in the first or second rounds, you have no business leaving.

That's silly...


If you're a 4th round pick as a Jr. & a 3rd round pick as a Sr., you should jump if you want to.

Why risk dropping in the draft, like Ball from UW- it was crazy that he went back for his Sr. sesason... He was 1st or 2nd round pick last year, now he's 3rd or 4th round pick.

The real money in the NFL is the 2nd contract after the 4 year rookie contract. Starting that time line a year early is huge!

The risk of injury with football is extreme. The sooner you get to the NFL the better.

[TheRaid]

Originally Posted by NoahBeanBizzel

True. We often hide behind the self-righteous justification that these guys aren't loyal. Or we say that they should get their degree. Another one we parrot around is that these guys should put the team first, come back, and help win a national championship. And it sure sounds good. Truth is, nobody cares about Reed, Jenkins, Floyd and Elam; we care about what they can do for Florida football. That's a big difference.

Does anybody remember Tyrone Prothro? How's he doing these days as a bank teller in Tuscaloosa? What, do they pay him 10.50 an hour to do that? He would've made more returning kicks for two years in the NFL than what he'll probably make over his entire life depositing checks for people.

For every poster who wants to talk about loyalty, I question who the first person will be to send Easley a check if his leg snaps apart. How many people in Tuscaloosa did that for Prothro? And I don't want to hear about an insurance policy; not when potentially millions of dollars-guaranteed-hang in the balance for something as simple as a signing bonus.

the truth is it just doesn't happen often that a senior has a career ending injury. It is just an excuse. And there is insurance. Heck, they could get injured in a car accident or get shot at a nightclub. So don't drive and don't go out at night?

[NoahBeanBizzel]

Yes it does happen that often. Powell would probably be leaving too had he not torn his ACL. At the very least Jelani's injury dropped his draft stock. What about that DE from FSU that was supposed to be an All-American? Or Matt Patchan? Or James Wilson? What about their careers? What about Cornelius Ingram? Ask Marcus Roberson how quickly something can happen to end your career. You think that neck injury doesn't go through his mind? Every year dozens of players blow their knees out, so I don't know what you're saying.

There's no excuses I'm trying to make. If you have an opportunity to make millions of dollars immediately, you take it. The players don't owe Florida-or anybody else-anything more the hard work they've already put in. They certainly don't owe them more than than they owe their often-broke families.

You aren't going to cut Powell a check for 25 grand (roughly what a lot of players make in a single game) if he blows his other knee out. At the most the majority of the Gator fans on this board will have a casual interest in how he does in the pros, unless he plays for the Bucs, Dolphins or Jags. What kind of loyalty does he owe us?

[DawgFanFromAlabam]

They don't want to lose to Georgia 3 years in a row??

[g8rfan22]

Originally Posted by DawgFanFromAlabam

They don't want to lose to Georgia 3 years in a row??

Way to interject some humor.

Bottom line is, as stated, they don't owe the fans anything. It's not as if they are getting paid to play. Yes they do have the opportunity to earn a degree but the casual fan who doesn't pay booster fees and buy season tix really aren't contributing to the expense of their scholarships. I have only used family tickets from my little brother once. I have season tickets. I have paid for our bowl game tix since he's been playing. I contribute money. I also support the players' decisions to go pro. They have their reasons for leaving and it's not anyone's business why.

On the flipside as a fan I wish they would stay to bring home the crystal ball. I also would like for them to get their degrees because most NFL careers are short lived.

There are many opinions on this topic and they are just that...opinions

[OaktownGator]

For any of these guys likely to get drafted, the question isn't why they would leave... it's why they would stay. Average NFL career is very short. Every year matters.

There are reasons to stay, but it's hardly an easy decision.

[Tebowism0823]

Originally Posted by grizgator

To specifically address the question:

Floyd - was clearly ready to go to the next level. More risk to staying than going. Recall that Floyd was dirt poor. Remember last year when Muschamp said that Floyd had been sending his Pell Grant money to his grandmother (which he should not have said, since, by law, Pell Grant money is supposed to be used for educational purposes).

Elam - IMO, was clearly ready, although I sure wish he would have stayed.

Reed - IMO, could have helped himself athletically by staying. However, one of the Gainesville Sun writers noted that Reed was not a surprise because he hated school. Based on that, one could speculate that credit or grade issues could have threatened eligibility, but I'll just assume he didn't want to go to class any more and thinks he can make it in the NFL now.

Jenkins - this is the only one where there is no good explanation that I've heard. The guy had a lot of reasons to return to raise his stock, but didn't. Whether it was a school issue, a money issue, or something else, I haven't heard. Maybe we'll never know. But he's gone, so doesn't really matter.

With the way we're recruiting, this will not be the end of this. We should expect to see this more and more regularly.....kids either going pro or leaving (transferring) because they couldn't make the 2 deep. With all of the APR exceptions available, not much to prevent it.

Pretty spot on. Not knocking Reed but he seems like the type that will end up being broke in a few years with no education to help him after the NFL doesn't work out.

[G8tr69]

Good luck to the 4 of them, hope for their success in the No Fun League.
;-)

[Tebowism0823]

Originally Posted by NoahBeanBizzel

True. We often hide behind the self-righteous justification that these guys aren't loyal. Or we say that they should get their degree. Another one we parrot around is that these guys should put the team first, come back, and help win a national championship. And it sure sounds good. Truth is, nobody cares about Reed, Jenkins, Floyd and Elam; we care about what they can do for Florida football. That's a big difference.

Does anybody remember Tyrone Prothro? How's he doing these days as a bank teller in Tuscaloosa? What, do they pay him 10.50 an hour to do that? He would've made more returning kicks for two years in the NFL than what he'll probably make over his entire life depositing checks for people.

For every poster who wants to talk about loyalty, I question who the first person will be to send Easley a check if his leg snaps apart. How many people in Tuscaloosa did that for Prothro? And I don't want to hear about an insurance policy; not when potentially millions of dollars-guaranteed-hang in the balance for something as simple as a signing bonus.

There's no such thing as loyalty these days; especially in sports. I'm the type that think they should be required to get their degree just because there's no promise the NFL will work out. Then what? Most of the time they don't come back. Also id like them to come back to help better the team which I feel any fan would. You're correct though, they owe us nothing.

[woltes]

Wish they would have stayed but you can't blame them for going after their dreams and money. I will say that Elam and Floyd were ready but the other two I'm not to sure about.

[Tebowism0823]

Originally Posted by Donzo

That's silly...

If you're a 4th round pick as a Jr. & a 3rd round pick as a Sr., you should jump if you want to.

Why risk dropping in the draft, like Ball from UW- it was crazy that he went back for his Sr. sesason... He was 1st or 2nd round pick last year, now he's 3rd or 4th round pick.

The real money in the NFL is the 2nd contract after the 4 year rookie contract. Starting that time line a year early is huge!

The risk of injury with football is extreme. The sooner you get to the NFL the better.

Ball will not drop past the 2nd round IMO.