Former Syracuse football wide receiver Trishton Jackson revealed why he entered the 2020 NFL Draft. Here are all the details and what it means.
Trishton Jackson shocked not only the Syracuse football team (and several teammates inside the locker room), but also several scouts when he decided to forgo his senior season for the 2020 NFL Draft.
Jackson initially revealed the news on December 26 in a Twitter announcement that was later confirmed by the team through a press release.
In his social media statement, he lightly mentioned that it wasn’t an easy decision to leave Syracuse, but he thought it was the correct one.
For the first time since TJ made the announcement, he went into more detail on Thursday regarding his thought process via Uninterrupted which is an athlete empowerment brand that was originally founded by LeBron James and his business partner Maverick Carter:
"“I’m entering the 2020 NFL Draft not just to change my life but to change my family’s life. My mother, my father, my older brothers. Being from Detroit, looking up to Barry Sanders, the Calvin Johnsons, and also I look up to people like Mohamed Sanu, Keenan Allen, and I feel like I’m ready to play with them guys. You know what I’m saying, I’m ready to bet on myself and double down. And I can’t wait to start this journey and that’s why I’m entering the 2020 NFL Draft.”"
Trishton’s words add some substance to his decision which makes more sense. Jackson opted to skip his senior season with the Orange and thus has a limited collegiate resume.
Technically he spent four years between Michigan State and Syracuse:
- During his time with the Spartans, he played in 10 career games in two years tallying 17 receptions for 232 yards and one touchdown.
- Although with the Orange he got a lot more opportunities to show what he’s made of: in 13 career games, he caught 69 catches for 1,050 yards and 12 touchdowns. Most of those numbers came from this past season with the Orange, he sprinkled in some efforts in the 2018 Camping World Bowl victory over West Virginia.
As Trishton said he’s betting on himself.
In 50 mock draft simulations (full seven-round mock drafts) via The Draft Network, Jackson wasn’t selected once. In addition, all the major draft experts for the site have updated big boards that each feature the top 220 players in the 2020 NFL Draft and again Trishton wasn’t even listed.
Finally, to put a cherry on top of this pie, before Trishton entered this draft, many experts considered this one of the deepest wide receiver classes in the last decade.
If Trishton Jackson is going to fulfill his destiny of creating a better life for himself and his family, he has a lot of work to do from now until the 2020 NFL Draft.