Heading into the 2020 season, Oregon OT Penei Sewell was considered to be the best offensive lineman in all of college football. The plan was for him to dominate the competition during his final season with the Ducks and then be a top pick in the 2021 NFL Draft.
But when the PAC-12 made the decision to cancel their season, Sewell did not know what was going on and when the league changed its mind and decided to have a season, he announced he was opting out.
“(Ever) since I was a little, I have dreamt of playing professional football,” Sewell stated in the tweet. “Accordingly, after long thought, prayer and many conversations with my family, I have decided to opt out of the 2020-2021 college football season and prepare for the 2021 NFL Draft.”
As we know, Sewell did end up being a top pick in the 2021 NFL Draft as the Detroit Lions selected him with the No. 7 overall pick.
Following OTAs this past week, Sewell spoke to reporters and he set the record straight as to why he decided to opt-out of the 2020 college football season.
“People get that mixed up,” Sewell said. “The reason why I ultimately opted-out was because the Pac-12 canceled their season. And from there on, I didn’t know what was going on. That was the reason.”
It sure seems like Sewell made the right decision to opt-out as all signs point to him having a long, successful NFL career.
