USC junior quarterback Matt Barkley to forgo 2012 NFL draft
Junior quarterback Matt Barkley will stay at USC for his senior season, forgoing the 2012 NFL draft. Barkley was the last of the four draft eligible juniors to announce his decision and just one day after junior safety T.J. McDonald
Barkley made his announcement Thursday at Heritage Hall in front of a crowd of media and fans. Barkley took to the podium promptly at 1 p.m.
Junior quarterback Matt Barkley announced his decision to stay at USC for a senior season at a press conference on Thursday. Andie Hagemann | Daily Trojan
The quarterback discussed the lengthy process involved in the decision making process. The three-year starter came to his conclusion after meetings with USC coach Lane Kiffin, Athletic Director Pat Haden and those associated with the NFL, including agents.
“It is my dream to play quarterback in the NFL and I intend to make that dream a reality,” Barkley said. “But I know in my heart I have not yet finished my journey as a Trojan football player.”
Barkley was one of the players who stayed despite the sanctions the NCAA handed down to USC two years ago.
“Our USC football team has been through some tough times and we have persevered,” Barkley said. “The 2012 team has some serious unfinished business to attend to and I intend to play a part of it.”
Immediately following his announcement, the crowd at Heritage Hall cheered as the Trojan Marching Band played. Barkley said he values his education at USC and is not postponing his dreams to play football at the professional level because of his desire to have another year as a college student.
Barkley credits his decision to stay to the inspiration from his fellow teammates. “I am staying because I want to finish what I started — finish alongside the most dedicated and courageous teammates I could ever have known for a few short years,” he said. “I dedicated myself fully to achieving all that I can as a USC football player.”
Top ten NFL salaries in 2011
Peyton Manning: $23 million
Sam Bradford: $18 million
Tom Brady: $18 million
Michael Vick: $16 million
Richard Seymour: $15 million
Elvis Dumervil: $14 million
Mark Sanchez: $13 million
Gerald McCoy: $13 million
Haloti Ngata: $12 million
Paul Soliai: $12 million
Begging to differ with the nonetheless congratulatory cheesemonger above, our errant colleague shall lead a charge girded in the same wisdom that consoles true martyrs. And yet as some students of deferred gratification will note, this homage to the Marketing Concept (certainly fulfilling the needs of Trojans and fans) is well worth the risks, in terms of generating greater dividends, well past a career’s typical lifecycle.
A+!!!
Begging to differ with the nonetheless congratulatory cheesemonger above, our errant colleague shall lead a charge girded in the same wisdom that consoles true martyrs. And yet as some students of deferred gratification will note, this homage to the Marketing Concept (certainly fulfilling the needs of Trojans and fans) is well worth the risks, in germs of generating greater dividends, well past a career’s typical lifecycle.
A+!!!
Attention Mr. Alumnus With Foresight (above). The correct usage of our mother tongue is “You should’ve gone pro” Not went pro. Perhaps you should have also stayed in school a little longer.
I earned an “A” in WRIT 340 FYI. I like to speak in a patois because it conveys a down-to-earth demeanor about me. I’m not prissy like you.
…And perhaps, you should have wrote “[t]he correct usage of our mother tongue is ‘[y]ou should’ve gone pro,’ not ‘went pro.’ ”
Whatevers, and it’s obvious you = “David” and “El Quixotian”
We frat guys support you Matt! We would stay too!
Matt, I commend you, your achievements, and your nobel gesture…but martyrs are fools. You’re losing chedda homie. You could be like Peyton Manning or Mark Sanchez and make 8 digit annual income. You should’ve went pro…Heismanns are meaningless.
But good luck, I hope you and next year’s talent will get SC to a championship.
Matt is an outstanding example of the student in student-athlete. His powerful words and mature presence give lie to the constant misrepresentation ofU SC student-athletes. Forsaking a Stanford education is apparently easier than leaving Troy! Right on Matt and Fight On for old SC!