Josh Rosen announced Wednesday he will forego his final year of eligibility at UCLA to enter the 2018 NFL Draft.
The junior quarterback announced his decision by posting a letter on his Instagram and Twitter accounts, thanking UCLA and his teammates.
“Over the last three years, UCLA has helped me grow as an athlete, a scholar and a member of the community,” Rosen wrote in his statement. “I have made some mistakes along the way; however, I am grateful that I made those mistakes backed by such a supportive and positive university, so that I could learn from them and better myself.
“It pains me to leave (my teammates), but I know they would never let me come back and pass up this opportunity to chase my dream,” Rosen wrote.
The signal caller is widely considered one of the top draft prospects and could potentially become the No. 1 overall pick. ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. and Todd McShay both list Rosen as the top-rated draft-eligible quarterback, with McShay ranking Rosen as the top draft-eligible player overall.
Rosen finished the season second in the nation in passing yards per game, throwing 26 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. He sat out UCLA’s Cactus Bowl loss to Kansas State, the second full game he missed because of concussion concerns this season.
Rosen ends his college career with the second-most career completions and third-most career passing yards in UCLA history. His 17 300-yard passing games are the most ever by a Bruin quarterback. The Bruins went 18-20 in Rosen’s three years at UCLA.
Reports came out last week indicating that Rosen did not want to play for the Cleveland Browns – who have the first pick in this year’s draft – per ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Rumors about Rosen ending up on the New York Giants – who have the second pick – have also started to swirl.
Both teams have quarterback listed as a top need on NFL.com’s list of needs for each team.
At the bottom of Rosen’s social media statement, he added “P.S. – Mom, I promise I will come back and finish my degree.”
Rosen said he was an Economics major last summer.