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Weighing Pros And Cons Of Turning Pro

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By ANDY STAPLES, The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 27, 2007

Updated: 12/27/2007 12:11 am

LAKE BUENA VISTA - As far as anyone knows, The Clash frontman Mick Jones wasn't a football-playing college junior when he penned the lyrics to "Should I Stay Or Should I Go." But the song - which really describes a crumbling romance - nails the turmoil raging inside the minds of every star junior football player this time of year.

"If I go there will be trouble," Jones sings, "And if I stay it will be double."

Even if they don't know their early '80s Brit-punk, University of Florida receiver/tight end Cornelius Ingram and defensive end Derrick Harvey probably have heard those words echoing in their heads in recent weeks. They've asked everyone they trust for advice. They've sent away for an evaluation from the NFL's Draft Advisory Council.

But even with all the advice and information they've gathered, Ingram and Harvey will have to trust their instincts when they choose whether to pull the trigger. Sometime between the Jan. 1 Capital One Bowl against Michigan and the Jan. 15 deadline for underclassmen to declare for the draft, they'll have to reach a decision.

And whether they stay or go, there could be trouble.

Fans could call them greedy and ungrateful for leaving, but they risk injury should they stay. Of course, if they could use another year to get better, they might cost themselves a fortune if they leave early.

Ingram said last week he expects to leave if the advisory council projects him to be picked in the first three rounds. Harvey has declined to reveal his criteria for the decision. But no matter how thorough the research, the player may not get the result he wants.

"There's no for-sure answer about anything," Ingram said Wednesday after the Gators' practice.

Following a Heisman Trophy season in 2004, Southern California quarterback Matt Leinart seemed a shoo-in to be the No. 1 pick in the 2005 NFL draft. He chose to return to USC, and he dropped to pick No. 10 in the 2006 draft.

After last season, Florida junior linebacker Brandon Siler had been told he could expect to be selected in the third or fourth round. He fell to the seventh. While the average college grad would leap at Siler's contract (four years, $1.7 million) and signing bonus ($43,000), Siler was left wondering how much money he left on the table by not returning.

Receiver Andre Caldwell understands the dilemma. Caldwell elected to stay at Florida this season in an attempt to move into the first or second round. He doesn't know if the move will pay off, but his research - which included advice from brother Reche, an NFL receiver - gave him an idea of the difference in dollars between a second-rounder and a fourth-rounder.

"A lot of money," Caldwell said.

And he's right. There is a major difference between the No. 1 overall pick (quarterback JaMarcus Russell signed a contract that included a reported $31 million in guarantees) and the first pick of the fourth round (tailback Michael Bush's contract contained a reported $500,000 in guaranteed money). But that's not all.

"There's a lot more chance," Caldwell said, "of you making that team."

A first- or second-rounder also gets a little more time to develop. Wednesday, Florida coach Urban Meyer told a story about attending an NFL training camp and asking an assistant how he taught a particular technique.

"The guy looks at me and he says, 'If they don't know that by the time they're here, I'm cutting them,'" Meyer said.

Only an early-round draft pick, because of the amount invested in him, would get the luxury of learning on the job. But, Florida co-defensive coordinator Greg Mattison said, coaches, fans and media must realize that the NFL is a job. So if a player has a chance to earn a good living, coaches shouldn't stand in his way, and fans shouldn't begrudge him for leaving early.

"You go to college," Mattison said, "to make money. ... You'd have to say a player is tremendously successful because he's making that kind of a living."

Reporter Andy Staples can be reached at (352) 262-3719 or astaples@tampatrib.com.

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