Georgia Football: Roquan Smith to enter 2018 NFL Draft

Georgia Football will lose it’s best player as the Butkus Award-winning linebacker Roquan Smith has decided to enter the 2018 NFL Draft.

Well, I can’t say I blame him. Roquan Smith has delighted Georgia Football fans for his entire time in Athens. That was never more true than this past season, where he clearly became one of the best defensive players in the country.

It should, therefore, be no surprise that Smith has decided to forgo his senior season and enter the NFL draft. As an inside linebacker, it’s hard to see his stock climbing any higher than it is right now. As a likely top 15 pick, the kind of money that awaits him is life changing.

But he gave it a lot of thought. Roquan didn’t just declare immediately after his final game for the Dawgs. He took his time and waited until the final day where he had to make his decision. A lot of reports have suggested that he was genuinely torn. Smith has loved playing for this team and the school means a lot to him.

However, it’s also probably true to say that there is little more that Roquan can do in college football. He has improved so much that it’s hard to see how he can get much better in Athens. The NFL is the only place where he can continue to get better and so from a development standpoint, it makes a lot of sense for him to go.

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Roquan will leave behind a fantastic legacy at Georgia as the blueprint for how inside linebackers can play in this Kirby Smart defense. There will be others of course, but Smith will always be special to us. He was the first. On behalf of all DotD thanks for everything Roquan. You’ve given us some of the best memories we could have imagined and we can’t wait to see you suit up on Sundays!