Matt Corral's Injury Raises More Questions On Bowl Opt Outs

Matt Corral, a projected first-round pick, suffered a potential career-altering injury in the Sugar Bowl.

Ole Miss' Matt Corral made a choice. He entered the Caesars Superdome with a chance to watch from the sideline. He called it a 'no-brainer' when asked why he wanted to play in the Sugar Bowl. 

Corral wanted to continue to make history with the No. 8 Rebels. One more victory would give Ole Miss its first 11-win season for the program.

Lane Kiffin didn't force him to suit up. A high-end option at the game's most important position, playing likely would do little to boost Corral's draft stock. 

It did plenty to potentially hurt it. 

Corral left the Sugar Bowl with a lower leg leg injury with minutes remaining in the first quarter. He wouldn't return, watching freshman Luke Altmyer struggle to find consistency passing and hobbled back to the locker room as No. 7 Baylor would pick up the 21-7 win. 

Corral made a choice. No one should fault him on that — just as no one should criticize those who opt out of bowl games without national championship aspirations.   

Praise one for potentially losing millions while shaming another for making the same difficult decision? Only in college football. 

New Year's Day was kickstarted with comments by ESPN's Kirk Herbstreit talking of the nuance of playing in a New Year's Six bowl. Herbstreit uttered a thought that universally brought controversy to both sides of the spectrum.

"I think this era of player just doesn't love football,” Herbstreit said of players opting out of bowl games. 

Corral loves football. So does Baylor All-American safety Jalen Pitre, as does linebacker Terrel Bernard. Bernard only boosted his draft stock with a 17 tackle, two sack performance on his way to being named player of the game. 

According to SI's NFL Draft, Bernard holds a fourth-round grade and is projected to be a backup at the next level. Corral is graded out as a first-round pick. 

Bernard wants to up his draft stock? Ok, play. Corral's stock was at its peak, so why risk it? 

The extent of the injury remains a mystery, though Kiffin told reporters the X-ray came back negative. It could be nothing more than a minor tweak that needs rest before the NFL Combine in March. 

It could be much worse and a lingering issue that goes undetected before the big day. 

Corral now becomes part of an unanswered statistic of the pros and cons of playing one final time before the draft. Other names like Notre Dame's Jaylon Smith and Michigan's Jake Butt come to mind when speaking of the negative factors that come with playing. 

Smith, the highest-rated defensive player in 2016, destroyed his knee while playing in the Fiesta Bowl. A consensus top-five pick, Smith fell out of the first round due to injury. 

Butt, the consensus top tight end and first-round prospect, fell to Day 3 of the draft after suffering a similar knee injury the following year in the Orange Bowl. He recorded 10 catches for 90 yards before retiring last year. 

Smith recently was raised from the New York Giants' practice squad after being released by both the Dallas Cowboys and Green Bay Packers. 

Corral's choice to play falls in the same category to that of Smith and Butt. No one can fault him for wanting to make history with his team, but was it worth it?  

That's a question for Corral to answer five years from now. Maybe 10? Twenty years? 

Michigan State's Kenneth Walker and Pittsburgh's Kenny Pickett were criticized to skipping out on the Peach Bowl late last month to pursue NFL draft aspirations. Walker, the Doak Walker Award winner, is expected to be the first running back taken. 

Pickett, a Heisman finalist who broke every Pitt passing record, was in the running for QB1 against Corral. Depending on the severity of the injury, Pickett's all but locked up early odds to be the first passer selected in April. 

Herbstreit's "back in my day" retort of shunning players for missing out on games is a universal opinion countless fans across the country also believe. Say Corral said goodbye after winning the Egg Bowl? 

Would he love the game any less? Would he be less remembered for his record-setting season in Oxford? 

Corral's legacy at Ole Miss won't be defined by his return to the field in New Orleans on crutches. It will be enshrined in the record books for passing yards, passing touchdowns and wins. 

His draft stock? That could take a hit harder than the Rebels' quarterback did on third down against Baylor's Cole Maxwell. A clear-cut first round option is no longer the consensus feel for Corral entering 2022. 

Another injury, another log added to one of the games most controversial opinions. 

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