The Ohio State football team decided to bring Quinshon Judkins into the program last season to help with the running game. He was the top running back at Ole Miss, but he decided to be a backup with the Buckeyes so he would have a better shot at winning a national championship.
That's exactly what he was able to do. Judkins scored three touchdowns against Notre Dame in the national championship. He was so good last year that he was a second-round pick by the Cleveland Browns. Judkins had some legal trouble, but that is behind him. He still hasn't signed his contract.
Judkins had been holding out to try to get more guaranteed money, as several second-round picks around the league did. Unfortunately, that legal trouble has screwed up his leverage. Now, it looks like the season is going to start without him as part of the team. One NFL pundit has a crazy way for him to get around it.
Could Quinshon Judkins return to play for the Ohio State football team?
Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk has theorized that Judkins could return to play college football since he hasn't signed his professional contract yet.
"If the player never signs an NFL contract (and Judkins has not), why shouldn’t he be able to return to college? The NFL’s Collective Bargaining Agreement contemplates the possibility of a player returning to school after the draft. While not binding on the NCAA, it shows that it shouldn’t be viewed as an impossibility."
Judkins likely won't decide to do this, but he does have another year of eligibility left from the NCAA. The Ohio State Buckeyes loved having him on the team. Columbus would be the most likely place for him to return to if he tried to do this crazy idea.
Ohio State certainly would not be able to bring him back at this point. The distraction would be far too great for a team that has to play the number-one team in the country on Saturday, and is ready to be a national championship contender once again. Judkins likely needs to figure out what the issue is in Cleveland.
Judkins would be smart to sign his rookie contract with the Browns as soon as possible. He needs to take the amount of guaranteed money that most of the other second-round picks got. At this point, some money is better than no money.