JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – It’s was the best news a Jaguars fan could hear to start the offseason.
Trevor Lawrence is entering the NFL draft.
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Not that there was much debate on whether Lawrence would elect to go pro, but his announcement on Wednesday morning solidifies what has been expected all season.
Jacksonville, of course, holds the No. 1 pick in the draft and is all but guaranteed to take a player who is considered a generational prospect at the position. The Jaguars haven’t had a legitimate foundation at the position since Mark Brunell’s nine-year tenure ended in 2003.
But Lawrence’s starpower will be unlike anything the town has seen before. He has been hailed as a franchise changer and would have likely been a top-five pick after his true freshman season had rules allowed him to enter the draft.
Lawrence, who finished second in balloting for the Heisman Trophy, had long since been expected to enter the draft. The former Cartersville High (Ga.) player is regarded as the top quarterback prospect since Andrew Luck in 2012.
“My time here has been amazing and I’ll be a Clemson Tiger forever,” Lawrence said near the end of a two-and-a-half minute video posted on Twitter that highlighted his time in college.
Thank you, Clemson... pic.twitter.com/JDbM8aYYGv
— Trevor Lawrence (@Trevorlawrencee) January 6, 2021
Lawrence finished his career at Clemson with 10,098 passing yards (758 for 1,138). He threw 90 touchdowns and completed 66.7% of his passes. Lawrence rushed for 943 yards and 18 touchdowns.
He was exceptional as a college starter, going 34-2 at Clemson and leading the Tigers to the national championship in his true freshman season.
The Jaguars have never held the No. 1 overall pick in the draft. They have had the second pick three times, using it to take left tackle Tony Boselli (1995), linebacker Kevin Hardy (1996) and left tackle Luke Joeckel (2013).