After three seasons at Missouri, including the last two as the starter, quarterback Blaine Gabbert has decided to take his talents to the NFL.
In a press release issued by the school, Gabbert announced that he is foregoing his final year of collegiate eligibility and will make himself available for the April draft. Gabbert figures to be one of the first quarterbacks taken in the upcoming draft, which likely played a fairly significant role in his decision.
“This is definitely a bittersweet day for me, I was really looking forward to having a chance to do some special things next season with my teammates, but in the end, this is the right decision to make for myself and my family,"said Gabbert. “These last three years have been an unbelievable experience for me, and I’ll miss being at Mizzou, but I’m definitely looking forward to this next stage of my life. I’m so grateful to have been part of such a great program and all of the people who have helped me get to this point, and now I have to take what I’ve learned, and build on that for the next level. I’ll always be a Tiger, and I look forward to watching the guys do big things in the future.”
Per the release, Mizzou head coach Gary Pinkel said that the time is right for Gabbert to try his wares in the professional ranks.
“We’re very proud of Blaine, and how hard he’s worked to put himself in position for this opportunity,” said Pinkel. “He’s been an outstanding leader for our team, it’s been a privilege to coach him and have him as part of our program. Blaine is excited to take on a new set of challenges at the next level, and I’m confident he’ll be a great representative of Mizzou Football going forward.”
Missouri went 18-8 with Gabbert as the starter. His 40 career touchdown passes ranks as third-best in school history, while a career pass efficiency rating of 132.59 is also the second-highest in Mizzou history.
The school noted in the release that Gabbert’s family is still working on representation.
As always, you can check out the complete list of underclassmen declarations by clicking HERE.