Everett Golson could make his way back to South Bend as he looks to showcase his talents to pro scouts after not being among the 332 players invited to the NFL Combine in Indianapolis, which begins Tuesday.
The former Notre Dame quarterback, who transferred to Florida State last summer, told ESPN’s Hannah Storm during an interview on “SportsCenter” Monday that he’s still deciding whether to participate in Notre Dame or Florida State’s pro day in March. Florida State’s pro day is March 29; Notre Dame’s is March 31.
“I haven’t decided yet,” Golson said. “… That’s something that i’m still discussing with my agent.”
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Notre Dame has allowed former players who left as graduate transfers to participate in their pro day, including quarterback Andrew Hendrix, who left Notre Dame to play the 2014 season under ex-Irish offensive coordinator Chuck Martin at Miami (Ohio).
Golson missed Florida State’s Peach Bowl defeat to Houston due to a death in the family and was benched in favor of Sean Maguire following the Seminoles’ Oct. 24 loss to Georgia Tech. The 6-foot, 199 pound native of Myrtle Beach finished his college career with 7,628 yards, 52 touchdowns and 23 interceptions.
In his SportsCenter interview, the notoriously camera-shy Golson (who was not made available to the media by Florida State during the 2015 season) used the platform to pitch himself as someone worthy of a chance in the NFL.
“Obviously I’m a little disappointed,” Golson said. “I think I possess the ability to play at the next level. I think I have the ability to compete with a lot of those guys who are going to the Combine. For me, it’s another thing to kind of shift back to just really working on your craft. I think that’s what I’ve been doing for these past two months since I’ve been out here in Phoenix is just really trying to perfect my craft and using that as some type of motivation, maybe. But really trying to be the best quarterback I can be, physically, mentally, everything.”
Notre Dame off to fast start in 2017 recruiting
At this time last year, Notre Dame only had one player verbally committed to its 2016 recruiting class (four-star offensive lineman Tommy Kraemer). Four class of 2017 recruits have already verbally committed to Notre Dame, two of whom are ranked as top-100 players by Rivals.com.
The latest Rivals100 was released Monday morning, with four-star tight end Brock Wright (Cypress, Texas) ranking 41st and four-star offensive lineman Joshua Lugg (Wexford, Penn.) 76th.
[MORE: Will Steve Elmer's departure help or hurt Notre Dame recruiting?]
Notre Dame’s other 2017 verbal commits are three-star offensive lineman Dillan Gibbons (Clearwater, Fla.) and four-star tight end Cole Kmet (Arlington Heights, Ill.).
Big week for Irish at NFL Combine
While Golson won’t be among the attendees at the NFL Combine this week, 10 former Notre Dame players will be. That total is the second-highest for any school this year, behind only Ohio State, which is sending 14 former players to Indianapolis.
The Irish invitees: Wide receiver Chris Brown, defensive lineman Sheldon Day, wide receiver Will Fuller, center Nick Martin, defensive lineman Romeo Okwara, running back C.J. Prosise, cornerback KeiVarae Russell, safety Elijah Shumate, linebacker Jaylon Smith and offensive tackle Ronnie Stanley.
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Notre Dame only had three players invited to last year’s Combine: Kyle Brindza, DaVaris Daniels and Ben Koyack. Koyack was the only player drafted, with the tight end selected by the Jacksonville Jaguars in the seventh round.