Months after becoming a multimillionaire, Justin Fields leads the charge to save college football season

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Justin Fields doesn’t need to play another college football game.

If the NFL Draft took place today, the Ohio State QB1 would almost certainly be one of the top five picks.

Featured as a generational quarterback talent since high school, Fields only needed a season as a college starter to endure rave reviews as he turned in one of the most dominant seasons and most effective in Ohio State history, earning a trip. in New York as a finalist for the Heisman Trophy.

Fields threw 3,273 yards on just 354 attempts – even more effective than Dwayne Haskins the year before – and an absurdly 41-3 touchdown / interception ratio, which is the most impressive ratio in college football history. He finished the season with a 181.4 quarterback score, the best in program history for a full-time starter.

He did more than enough to secure his status as one of the top prospects in the upcoming NFL Draft. To be frank, he’s only a few months away from a salary of several tens of millions.

Few would have blamed him if he had acted to protect this draft stockpile amid a global pandemic and uncertain season. He could have chosen to prepare for the NFL like Micah Parsons of Penn State, Rondale Moore of Purdue or Rashod Bateman of Minnesota, or quit the team once the Big Ten postpone the season to the spring.

But Fields doesn’t do that. In fact, it does the exact opposite.

Over the past few weeks, Fields has made it clear that he is not ready for the end of his career in the state of Ohio.

While he could easily have had one foot out of the door the entire offseason, Fields has instead led the charge for college football players looking to play this coming season.

He sent a flurry of tweets to make his position clear, helped lead a lobby for a college football players association hoping to save the season, collected hundreds of thousands of signatures on a petition asking Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren to restore the fall season, and appeared on ESPN Radio to discuss his fight to save the season.

And his intentions are not selfish. If the football season is canceled, Fields – a guaranteed millionaire – will be fine. He knows it. But he’s also fighting for the players who need this season, the guys who have worked hard and fought injuries to get one last shot – guys like Jonathon Cooper, Justin Hilliard or Trey Sermon.

“The guys who came back in their fifth year, who came back from an injury, I think we owe those guys the most,” Fields said. “I just saw behind the scenes all the work they’ve done and how much they really care, and I also believe that all the coaches and parents of the players want us to play, and they are too. safely with guidelines set by the State of Ohio. ”

All this fight of a player whose future of football is already assured.

But even for Fields personally, the season is more than about the money, and more than his NFL Draft stock. He made this clear when he told the media that he never even considered retiring from the college football fall season.

“I feel like people really have different situations as to whether or not to opt out,” Fields said in early August, before the Big Ten was postponed. “Some people’s families may not be as financially stable as others, but I as a child have always been a competitor. I have always loved to play football. Growing up with my family, I never really needed anything. I think my family provided me with everything I needed. So getting the money as fast as possible is not really a priority for me.

In Fields’ eyes, this college football season wasn’t just another necessary step towards the NFL or a possible payday, it was a chance to complete an unfinished business. It was a chance to win a Heisman Trophy, a chance to win a national championship, a chance to “beat the brakes” of Michigan, once again.

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This is why when he called his father, Pablo, to tell him that the Big Ten season was postponed, there was an undeniable pain in his voice.

“My son is always upbeat and positive, but in our conversation that day he was heartbroken,” Pablo said. SI.com. “I don’t think he wants to end college football. We are by no means rich, but there is no rush to get the dollars. He adores Ohio State University and loves his teammates, and he has unfinished business that he would like to complete.

But the sad truth is, no matter how hard he fights, he might not get the chance to handle this unfinished business.

The Big Ten is unlikely to reverse course and reestablish the fall season at this point, and a spring season is likely to be the shell of a season that would bring many practical and logistical concerns for a draft prospect of the NFL.

The league has reportedly planned to adjust their league schedule to move their combine and draft to host a college football season in the spring, but even if that happens, it might not make sense for a first-pick. high turn to play and risk injury. Moreover, all this assumes that a spring season proves to be feasible anyway, which is far from certain.

Fields and his dad both contend he’s in no rush to get that NFL paycheck, but the reality is that a life-changing amount of money is on the horizon, and he would be very difficult to justify doing anything that might put this off. in danger.

Because of this, there is a very, very real chance that Justin Fields played his last game in a Buckeye uniform. It’s not how he wanted his college career to end or how Ohio State fans wanted to send the player who could very well be the best quarterback in program history, but it could be the looming reality.

But that won’t stop Fields from fighting. And if this is how his Buckeye career ends, this is how he is to be remembered – as a fighter. He is to be remembered as a player who fought like hell for his teammates, for the fans and for the future of college football, until the very end.

If he goes out, he will come out swinging. And while it’s not the same as a national title, a Heisman Trophy, or a 100 spot on Michigan, it’s still a hell of a legacy to be left behind.



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