Sometimes you hear a news story, and all you can think “what on Earth are they thinking?” Today the worlds of college football, the NFL Draft and actually the NFL itself witnessed their version of actress Shelly Long leaving the uber-popular 80s sitcom “Cheers.” I can’t think of similar precedent in the world of sports, so I had to use the entertainment world here.
But yes, you read that correctly, Stanford QB Andrew Luck, the slam dunk choice as the #1 overall pick by the Carolina Panthers. is coming back to “The Farm” for his senior season.
According to Elliot Almond of the San Jose Mercury-News:
Luck’s announcement comes as coach Jim Harbaugh reportedly is weighing offers from the 49ers and Miami Dolphins.
Luck, a redshirt sophomore who led the Cardinal (12-1) to a historic season that culminated with a 40-12 victory in the Orange Bowl on Monday night, would have been the first pick in the draft. Carolina Panthers officials said this week they had planned to take the quarterback with their first selection.
But Luck said he wanted to graduate before turning pro.
“I am committed to earning my degree in architectural design,” he said in a prepared statement.
Yes, Luck is a solid citizen, all-around good guy and phenomenal student at a great University. Yes, he possibly has a bright future ahead of him even without football. And yes labor strife looms as a dark cloud over the NFL next year, but SERIOUSLY???!!!!
This is nothing short of a WTF moment. Because when you’re #1, all you can do is hurt your draft stock next year. Look at Jake Locker, and what has happened to his draft stock.
Paul M. Banks is CEO of The Sports Bank.net, a Midwest webzine. He’s also a regular contributor to Chicago Now, the Tribune’s blog network, Walter Football, Yardbarker Network, and Fox Sports
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