Oregon senior running back Royce Freeman will not play in this weekend’s Las Vegas Bowl, thus bringing his collegiate career to a close before he moves on to the NFL next year. Oregon head coach Mario Cristobal announced Freeman’s lack of availability to reporters today ahead of the bowl game against Boise State.
NEWS: Senior running back Royce Freeman, the UO career leader in rushing, will not play in Saturday’s Las Vegas Bowl, Mario Cristobal said. #GoDucks
— Rob Moseley (@DuckFootball) December 14, 2017
Freeman played in all 12 games for the Ducks this season, rushing for 1,475 yards and 16 touchdowns. Freeman’s career at Oregon has been a highly productive one under two different coaches. As a freshman in 2014, Freeman rushed for 1,365 yards and 18 touchdowns to quickly begin gaining some national attention as the Ducks advanced to the national championship game in the inaugural season of the College Football Playoff (but some guy named Marcus Mariota was doing some good things too at the time to grab the majority of the national attention).
Freeman rushed for 5,621 yards and 60 touchdowns for Oregon, and he was also responsible for four touchdown receptions.
Cristobal on Freeman’s decision to sit out the bowl: “This is hard for him. This is not an easy decision, for a guy who’s invested his heart and soul in this program.” #GoDucks
— Rob Moseley (@DuckFootball) December 14, 2017
Freeman will join a growing list following a growing trend of sitting out of a bowl game before moving to the NFL.
