Pac-12 College Football Early Entrants into the 2020 NFL Draft
Posted by Ryan Wright
Twitter: @RyanWrightRNG
Even though the 2019 college football season pretty much went as expected in the Pac-12, with preseason polls predicting Oregon to win the North and Utah out of the South, still, the conference turned in an exciting run on the gridiron. USC kept close tabs on the Utes in the South not allowing for a runaway divisional win as seen in the North. As fate would have it, Utah and Oregon would collide in the Pac-12 Championship Game. With a chance to earn a possible College Football Playoff bid if a victory was claimed, the Utes succumbed to the Ducks (37-15) leaving the conference without a participant in college football’s final four. Now the focus turns to the 2020 season with each team seeking to build upon the progress made in hopes of capturing a conference title at the end of the season, but which teams will be without elite underclassmen who are ready to claim their NFL glory?
Of the 115 NFL Draft eligible juniors who have declared early already, the Pac-12 has not taken a big hit with just 14 opting to leave school early. Of the 14 taking off, only nine programs are affected and of the nine Washington is losing the most with three. The good news, the developing underclassmen talent that are staying should make the Pac-12 a tough conference once again in 2020.
Pac-12 teams are not out of the clear yet, the deadline to declare for the NFL Draft is on Friday, Jan. 24. The next big events for those continuing on to the pro ranks, the NFL Scouting Combine is on Feb. 24 and the NFL Draft takes place on April 23.
North (5)
Oregon State – WR – Isaiah Hodgins – second team All-Pac-12
Stanford – TE – Colby Parkinson – second team All-Pac-12
Washington – QB – Jacob Eason
Washington – RB – Salvon Ahmed
Washington – TE – Hunter Bryant – first team All-Pac-12
South (9)
Arizona – RB – JJ Taylor
Arizona State – RB – Eno Benjamin – first team All-Pac-12
Arizona State – P – Michael Turk – first team All-Pac-12
Colorado – WR – Laviska Shenault – second team All-Pac-12
UCLA – TE – Devin Asiasi
UCLA – CB – Darnay Holmes
USC – OT – Austin Jackson – first team All-Pac-12
Utah – CB – Jaylon Johnson – first team All-Pac-12
Utah – DB – Javelin Guidry
Photo credit: BruinsNation.com; Darnay Holmes gets the pass deflection