BATON ROUGE -- LSU defensive end Marquise Hill will pursue a professional football career rather than return to school for his senior season, he announced on Monday.
Hill, a native of New Orleans, made the decision after getting cleared by the National Football League to be eligible for the league's draft in April. Originally, Hill's application to the league came into question. However, he has since be cleared and will now be eligible for the league's draft.
"Even though Marquise decided to pull his name from the NFL Draft earlier this month, his involvement with an agent put his eligibility as a collegiate player in question," LSU associate athletics director for compliance Chris Howard said. "Rather than go through an appeal process to regain his eligibility, Marquise has decided to forgo his senior season and make himself available for the NFL Draft."
Hill started 13 games for the Tigers in 2003, registering 40 tackles, including 10.5 for losses. Hill added six sacks and a team-best 24 quarterback hurries for a squad that finished No. 1 in the nation in scoring defense and total defense.
"When I came to LSU, it was to be a part of a great program, to win a national championship and get a college education," Hill said. "We won a national title and I'm working very hard to get my degree. I want to thank Coach Saban, the coaching staff and my teammates, who gave me their friendship, advice and support. I'm sorry that I will not be a part of next year's team."
During his career, Hill started 25 games for the Tigers and he finished with 108 tackles and 10 sacks, including one against Oklahoma in the Sugar Bowl.
"We want to support all of our players in what they choose to do," LSU coach Nick Saban said. "We have a very good agent-education program here at LSU that helps inform and educate our players. We will continue to work with our players to ensure that they make the best decisions possible regarding their careers, both on and off the field."
Possible first rounder, plenty of depth, oversized DE or oversized DE. Im really high on the kid.
02-04-2004, 07:18 AM
Hill Enters Draft!!!!
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