College Football: Every Power 5 player who opted out of 2020 season

Which college football players have decided to opt-out of the 2020 season?

Not every college football player who is allowed to play will choose to do so in 2020.

In the midst of a global pandemic, several players from Power 5 schools have decided that playing this season was not in the cards for them. Though the Big Ten and the Pac-12 postponed their seasons to the spring, a handful of players in both conferences weren’t going to play this year anyway. Let’s take a look at all the Power 5 players who chose to opt-out and not play this fall.

Here are the Power 5 college football players who decided to opt-out.

ACC (12)

• Duke Blue Devils (2): OL Jacob Rimmer, LS Ben Wyatt
• Florida State Seminoles (2): DL Dennis Briggs Jr., DL Jamarcus Chatman
• Miami Hurricanes (1): DE Gregory Rousseau
• North Carolina Tar Heels (3): DB DJ Ford, DB Javon Terry, DB Bryce Watts
• Pittsburgh Panthers (1): DL Jaylen Twyman
• Syracuse Orange (1): DL Cooper Dawson
• Virginia Tech Hokies (1): CB Caleb Farley
• Wake Forest Demon Deacons (1): WR Sage Surratt

Big Ten (19)

• Illinois Fighting Illini (1): RB Ra’Von Bonner
• Maryland Terrapins (6): DL Jalen Alexander, DB Vincent Flythe, OL Austin Fontaine, QB Josh Jackson, OL Johnny Jordan, LB TJ Kautai
• Michigan Wolverines (3): OL Jalen Mayfield, DB Ambry Thomas, RB Christian Turner
• Michigan State Spartans (4): LB Marcel Lewis, DE Jacob Panasiuk, OL Jordan Reid, OL Justin Stevens
• Minnesota Golden Gophers (1): WR Rashod Bateman
• Northwestern Wildcats (1): OT Rashawn Slater
• Penn State Nittany Lions (1): LB Micah Parsons
• Purdue Boilermakers (1): WR Rondale Moore
• Rutgers Scarlet Knights (1): WR Everett Wormley

Big 12 (3)

• Oklahoma Sooners (1): RB Kennedy Brooks
• Kansas State Wildcats (1): DB Jonathan Alexander
• Texas Longhorns (1): OL Willie Tyler III

Pac-12 (3)

• Arizona Wildcats (1): QB Kevin Doyle
• USC Trojans (1): DL Jay Tufele
• Washington State Cougars (1): WR Kassidy Woods

SEC (12)

• Auburn Tigers (2): DB Traivon Leonard, LB Chandler Wooten
• LSU Tigers (2): DL Neil Farrell, DB Kary Vincent Jr.
• Ole Miss Rebels (1): OL Eli Johnson
• South Carolina Gamecocks (2): OL Mark Fox, OL Jordan Rhodes
• Vanderbilt Commodores (5): OL Bryce Baile, OL Cole Clemens, K Oren Milstein, LB Dimitri Moore, OL Jonathan Stewart

In total, there are 49 players who have decided to opt-out of the 2020 college football season. The Big Ten leads the way with 19, followed by the ACC and the SEC at 12 apiece, followed by the Big 12 and the Pac-12 at three apiece. In many of these Power 5 conferences, top players have opted not to play, especially in the ACC and the Big Ten.

Minnesota Golden Gophers wide receiver Rashod Bateman, Oklahoma Sooners running back Kennedy Brooks, Virginia Tech Hokies cornerback Caleb Farley, Purdue Boilermakers wide receiver Rondale Moore, Penn State Nittany Lions linebacker Micah Parsons, Miami Hurricanes defensive end Gregory Rousseau and Wake Forest Demon Deacons wide receiver Sage Surratt all opted out.

Those seven jump off the page because of their NFL Draft prospects. Parsons and Rousseau are projected top-10 picks. Bateman, Farley and Moore are all first-round talents. Brooks and Surratt should be off the board by the end of day three. Though the Big Ten postponed Bateman, Moore and Parsons’ seasons anyway, Brooks, Farley, Rousseau and Surratt could all have still played.

Obviously, these 49 players have made the best decisions for themselves and their families during the age of the coronavirus. Some will go pro, while others may return to play in the hopefully somewhat normal 2021 campaign. For now, we know for sure these 49 players are not suiting up to play Power 5 college football in any capacity.

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