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Far-Fetched Friday: Justin Fields, Not Trevor Lawrence, to Be Number One Pick
Much has been said about this upcoming NFL Draft class, specifically at the quarterback position and Trevor Lawrence, the man many consider to be the best QB prospect of the last 15 years.
Welcome back to Far-Fetched Friday, where every Friday we give you a bold prediction that we believe will come to fruition. This Friday, we look at two elite college quarterbacks.
There is no secret that I have had my doubts about Lawrence as a prospect, but you cannot deny his accomplishments.
Coming out of high school, 24/7 Sports, the premier high school football ranking system, named Lawrence not only the best prospect of his class but also the 7th best prospect they had ever evaluated.
So he understandably came out of high school with a ton of hype, and to say he backed it up would be an understatement. He started his freshman season by beating out a senior quarterback that had led Clemson to a Number 1 ranking and a Playoff Semi-Final the year before. He ended that freshman season by becoming the first freshman quarterback since 1986 to lead his team to a National Championship.
The hype was real. And although the next two seasons ended disappointedly with no additional National Championships, Trevor Lawrence still leaves a college football legend and the consensus predicted number 1 pick.
So why do I do think Justin Fields will beat him out? Well, because Justin Fields is just as good as a prospect.
There are actually plenty of similarities between the two. For one, both came out of the state of Georgia. Justin Fields was in that same high school class as Trevor Lawrence and came in at the second-best prospect behind Lawrence. Unfortunately, Field's was overshadowed by Lawrence's reputation.
But the thing is, remember how I wrote that Trevor Lawrence was named the 7th best prospect the site had ever evaluated in their 21-year history?? Well, guess who comes in at number 8? That's right, Justin Fields.
People just kind of forgot about Justin Fields because while Lawrence was winning a National Championship as a true freshman, Fields was on the bench at the University of Georgia.
Fields would transfer to Ohio State University after that freshman season and put together two solid years. He got his chance against Trevor Lawrence this year, and he took it with a dominating performance in a 49-28 CFB Playoff Semi-Final victory. He lost the National Championship game, but he had cemented his stock as an elite prospect.
With all that said, the real reason I think he'll go first is that Ohio State coaching legend Urban Meyer is now the head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Jaguars have the number 1 overall pick in this year's draft. And with everything we know about college football loyalties in this country, Urban Meyer might just decide to go against the grain and select a fellow Buckeye with the number 1 pick.
My official Far-Fetched Friday prediction is that by the time the draft rolls around in April, Ohio State's Justin Fields will be the number 1 overall pick by Ohio State legend Urban Meyer.
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