Star Clemson football linebacker will skip bowl game after declaring for NFL Draft
One of Clemson football’s top defenders is leaving school early to declare for the 2024 NFL Draft, he announced Tuesday via social media.
Junior Tigers linebacker Jeremiah Trotter Jr. said on Instagram he was forfeiting his remaining eligibility and declaring for the draft, a few days after Clemson (8-4) wrapped up its regular season with a win over South Carolina.
ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper ranks Trotter as the No. 2 off-ball linebacker in the draft class behind Texas A&M’s Edgerrin Cooper Jr.
Trotter, in an Instagram post, thanked “the best fans in the country” for showing he and his family love and appreciation throughout his three-year Clemson career, as well as God, the Tigers coaching staff and his teammates for helping him make friendships and memories “I will cherish for the rest of my life.”
Trotter did not directly address in his post whether or not he’d participate in Clemson’s bowl game, but his father told the Post & Courier Trotter would be opting out of the bowl game and will not play. The Tigers are currently being projected to play in the Holiday Bowl or Gator Bowl and will learn their destination Sunday.
Trotter is the first of a handful notable Clemson players to announce their NFL Draft decisions. Junior cornerback Nate Wiggins has garnered significant NFL Draft buzz, and junior linebacker Barrett Carter and running backs Will Shipley and Phil Mafah also have decisions to make. Kiper has Wiggins as a first-round selection.
“After long thought and prayer, I am officially announcing that I am taking the next step in a lifelong dream and declaring for the 2024 NFL Draft,” Trotter wrote. “I will always be a Clemson Tiger! GO TIGERS!”
Trotter, Clemson’s starting middle linebacker, led the team with 88 total tackles, 15 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks in this season in 12 games. He also had seven pass deflections, two forced fumbles and two interceptions (including a pick six) in 2023.
Trotter is one of six finalists for the 2023 Butkus Award, given to the nation’s top linebacker, and should be in line for a number of all-conference and All American honors later this season.
That comes after Trotter was a second-team Associated Press All-American in 2022 for a Clemson team that went 11-3, won the ACC title and made the Orange Bowl.
Trotter is the son of former NFL Pro Bowl linebacker Jeremiah Trotter Sr., also known as the Axe Man, and wore No. 54, his dad’s number, at Clemson. He joined coach Dabo Swinney’s program in 2021 as a top 50 national recruit.
Trotter is the second player in two seasons to opt out of a Clemson bowl game, as defensive end Myles Murphy skipped the 2022 Orange Bowl after declaring for the 2023 NFL Draft last fall. Swinney said that, to his knowledge, Clemson hadn’t had a player opt out of a bowl game in his decade-plus tenure before Murphy’s decision.
This story was originally published November 28, 2023 at 12:35 PM with the headline "Star Clemson football linebacker will skip bowl game after declaring for NFL Draft."
