<H3 style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 8px">Jumping ship good for Collie, BYU</H3>
By Matt Payne</A> - 20 Jan 2009
I've been asked several times if I think Austin Collie made the right choice by leaving school early to enter the NFL draft, and each time I gave the same answer: definitely.
While fans (and probably coaches and teammates) would love to see Collie play one more year for the Cougars, the risks for him to come back would be enormous. After leading the nation in receiving and tying an NCAA single-season record with 11 straight 100-yard receiving games, Collie does not stand to gain much by returning. He does, however, have much to lose. Consider:
Physical health - Collie missed several weeks of fall camp last season and was hobbled the first few games of the year with a stress fracture in his leg. Another year at BYU could be devastating if Collie gets injured again.
Age - After spending two years on a mission, Collie is already older than most receivers he will be competing with for a draft spot. Teams may take a chance on a younger but less talented player over one who is a few years older. Waiting another year would just put Collie at a bigger disadvantage.
Money - The average salary for a wide receiver taken in the second round in last year's NFL draft was $2.3 million. Receivers taken in the seventh round made an average of $341,250. Enough said.
Collie obviously has a chance to make a considerable amount of money playing in the NFL, but his earning potential is tied to one thing: physical productivity. Unlike other jobs, the NFL gives players a short window to make their money before they can't play anymore. The rewards of coming back are not worth risking what Collie has been dreaming about since he was young.
One thing that may have been enticing to Collie to come back is BYU's 2009 schedule, which is loaded with tough games. Collie would have had a chance to showcase his talent against top-flight programs like Oklahoma and Florida State, as well as a shot at redemption against Utah and TCU. Instead, he'll be able to compete with the best players in the world.
Collie's competition in the draft will be pretty stiff. Biletnikoff Award winner Michael Crabtree from Texas Tech, along with stand-outs Jeremy Maclin from Missouri and Florida's Percy Harvin, headline a deep receiver class in 2009. If last year's draft, however, serves as a predictor of things to come then Collie has little to worry about.
Thirty-three wide receivers were taken in the 2008 draft. 27 of them signed contracts and 22 of them caught at least one pass or played on special teams (a popular place for rookie receivers to cut their professional teeth). Many draft experts predict Collie to be taken between the third and the fifth rounds, which gives him a very good chance of earning a spot on the team that drafts him.
One thing that should not go unnoticed is that Collie's departure signifies a major step for BYU's football program in terms of national recognition. Usually it's only the big schools - USC, Oklahoma, Florida, et al. - that lose underclassmen to the draft. Now BYU has reached the level where its marquee players are being noticed on a national level. As difficult as it is to see Collie go, it is rewarding to see good people use their time at BYU to realize their dreams.
not.that.matt.payne@gmail.com
http://newsnet.byu.edu/story.cfm/70776
