Huard: Huskies WR John Ross smart to declare early for draft
Jan 3, 2017, 12:14 PM
Brock Huard said scouts have UW's John Ross tabbed as the second or third best WR in the 2017 NFL Draft. (AP)
(AP)
Nearly one-third of the 96 underclassmen who declared last season went undrafted in 2016 but at least four Huskies will be trying their luck in 2017, foregoing their senior seasons in hopes of their NFL dreams. The school announced Tuesday that safety Budda Baker, cornerback Sidney Jones, defensive lineman Elijah Qualls and wide receiver John Ross have opted to forgo their senior seasons.
710 ESPN Seattle’s Brock Huard said he hopes that the underclassmen looked at all of their options before declaring but said that he’s confident leaving early was a smart move for Ross.
“For John Ross, it is,” Huard said Tuesday. “I think I can say that definitively.”
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After missing all of last season with a torn ACL, Ross led UW with 81 receptions for 1,150 receiving yards and 17 touchdowns, while also adding 102 yards and a score on eight rushing attempts. He is also a dangerous kick returner and showed improved route running all season. As Brent Stecker wrote, Ross has been touted as a first-round pick and has drawn comparisons to Pro Bowler DeSean Jackson.
Huard noted that Ross played arguably his worst game of the season in the team’s Peach Bowl loss, collecting just five receptions for 28 yards against the vaunted Alabama defense. Still, Huard said he spoke with scouts on the sideline prior to the Bowl game, who told him that Ross will likely be the second or third picked – after Clemson’s Mike Williams and in the running with Western Michigan’s Corey Davis.
“Then there’s a pretty steep cliff,” Huard said. “The scout was saying if you’re a receiver and you’re John Ross, this is a good year for you to come out. This is not a good wide receiver draft. And if he runs as he should run, he should run in the 4.3’s (40-yard dash), he’s gonna be in that first round and it’s gonna be the right decision. Throw on top of that the ACL injury. Throw on top of that, the little operation on the knee to clean that out and build some cartilage back up. I think it’s the right move for John and I don’t think anybody in that program has any other reservation or has any other way about it.”
Beyond Ross, Baker, Jones and Qualls are considered on multiple mock draft boards to be first- or second-round talents. Third-year sophomore Vita Vea and running back Lavon Coleman have also been reported as considering leaving for the draft. Prior to the official announcement about Baker, Jones and Qualls, Huard had advice for all of those underclassmen: be careful.
“My advice and my counsel to these five or six guys is to be very, very careful. And, please, do not just listen to one side and the agent … because the numbers are clear: More underclassmen are coming out than ever before and more are disappointed than ever before,” he said. “Make sure your business is in order when you make that decision.”
Beyond those potential losses, UW will also be losing key seniors such as defensive back Kevin King, outside linebacker Jake Elderkamp and tight end Darrell Daniels. With quarterback Luke Falk likely returning to Washington State and a young, talented USC team returning, Huard says it will be tough for UW to stay at the top of the Pac-12, though the team’s marked improvements are nothing to sneeze at.
“There were a lot of firsts this year and this is the first in some time where there are five or six underclassmen weighing their chances of being a high pick or not,” he said. “What a testament to the development of this program, of actually taking some high-level recruits and making them better.”
