Illinois RB Chase Brown to skip bowl game, enter NFL draft

CHAMPAIGN, Unwell. – Illinois operating again Chase Brown has determined to skip the ReliaQuest Bowl and enter the NFL draft.

Brown had 1,643 yards dashing this season, tops among the many Energy 5 conferences. He introduced his future plans on Twitter on Friday.

Illinois (8-4) is scheduled to play No. 24 Mississippi State (8-4) on Jan. 2 at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, in a matchup of Large Ten and Southeastern convention groups.

“By the highs and lows, my time at Illinois has been the most effective expertise of my life,” stated Brown, a junior who began his faculty profession at Western Michigan in 2018. “I earned a level, superior as an athlete, and fashioned lifelong connections.”

Brown will end his profession because the second main rusher at Illinois with 3,558 yards, trailing Robert Holcombe (4,105 yards from 1994-97). His dashing yardage this season is third all-time on the faculty behind Mikel LeShoure (1,697 in 2010) and Rashard Mendenhall (1,681 yards in 2007). He set a faculty single-season file this 12 months with 11 100-yard video games.

Brown thanked his teammates for pushing him and his coaches for believing in him. He additionally thanked Illinois followers.

“Your dedication, ardour, and love for this workforce are drastically appreciated. It has been an honor and a memorable expertise to play for you all,” he wrote. “I’ll at all times bleed orange & blue.”

Illinois RB Chase Brown to skip bowl sport, enter NFL draft initially appeared on NBCSports.com