Jadeveon Clowney Sitting Out Would Ruin College Football

By Connor Muldowney
Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

It may be a touchy subject for both Jadeveon Clowney and former South Carolina Gamecock running back Marcus Lattimore, but the possible injury of Clowney in 2013 has been the talk of college football for the better part of a week now.

Many people believe that the sophomore defensive end should sit out his 2013 season, which would be his junior year, and ensure that he won’t get injured because he has a chance to be the No. 1 pick in the 2014 NFL Draft.

Would this be a good idea for the uber-talented defensive-stopper?

Lattimore knows a thing or two about getting injured. The once-first round projected running back suffered a gruesome season-ending knee injury during the 2012 season and doesn’t believe Clowney should be worried about the possibility of an injury.

Experts believe that Clowney would be the top pick in this April’s draft if he were allowed to leave college after his sophomore season. Clowney, however, laughed off the talks of him sitting out a year for his beloved Gamecocks.

Lattimore also knows that Clowney won’t even second-guess the idea of sitting out. Lattimore said that Clowney loves his team and they have talked about having no regrets, even if an injury were to occur.

Head coach Steve Spurrier chimed in with words of his own about the Clowney talks:

“They(members of the media) don’t know how important it is for Jadeveon to be with his college team. You know there’s more to life than how can you make a whole bunch of money.”

Although Spurrier’s statement may be clouded by his $3.3 million annual salary, he does have a point.

College athletes play for the love of the game. Rarely do you see players who are the best on their respective teams sitting seasons out because they want to be the top pick in the following year’s draft. If Clowney did this, it would ruin college football and set a standard for star players in the future.

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