LSU All-American receiver Ja'Marr Chase expected to opt out of NCAA season to focus on NFL Draft

Everything went right for Coach Ed Orgeron and LSU last college football season as the Tigers had a historically good offense on the way to winning the national championship, but that unit has been absolutely gutted this offseason via players leaving for the NFL Draft, and now superstar wideout Ja'Marr Chase has decided to opt out so he can prepare for the 2021 draft. The Tigers are +700 on the William Hill moneyline odds to repeat as SEC champions, behind Alabama (-130) and Georgia (+240). Chase's official announcement is expected Monday. 

Orgeron had previously lost three other key members of that offense: Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Joe Burrow, who had the best season by any FBS quarterback in history and was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 draft by the Bengals; receiver Justin Jefferson, who was the No. 22 overall  pick by the Vikings; and running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire, the 32nd overall pick by the Chiefs.

Chase is not opting out specifically due to the coronavirus as many other NCAA players have but mostly to prepare for next year's draft. He's projected as a top-five pick, with the CBS Sports Big Board ranking him as the No. 4 overall prospect.

Last year, Chase won the Biletnikoff Award as the nation's top wideout and was a unanimous All-American in setting SEC records for receiving yards with 1,780 and receiving touchdowns with 20 as a sophomore. Chase, Burrow, Edwards-Helaire and Jefferson helped LSU become the first offense in SEC history with a 5,000-yard passer, a 1,000-yard rusher and two 1,000-yard receivers in the same season.

This news obviously means that Chase will not join Texas Tech's Michael Crabtree and Oklahoma State's Justin Blackmon as the only players in NCAA history to win the Biletnikoff Award in back-to-back seasons. The two other finalists last year, Oklahoma's CeeDee Lamb and USC's Michael Pittman Jr., both were 2020 draft picks. Another potential candidate, Minnesota's Rashod Bateman, opted out of the season.

Chase was to wear the No. 7 jersey this year, which is the most coveted number in program history. Guys like Patrick Peterson, Tyrann Mathieu, Leonard Fournette, DJ Chark and Grant Delpit all wore that. It's not clear as of this writing who might wear No. 7. Early speculation focused on superstar defensive back Derek Stingley, Jr., but he tweeted out his number 24 with a lock after the Chase news.  

LSU opens the season at home on Sept. 26 vs. Mississippi State, with the Tigers as 16-point favorites. 

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