The 2016 college football bowl season is in full swing with a number of games slated to be played through the New Year.
But for some players participating in a bowl game is not as rewarding as it sounds.
So far three high-profile players – Stanford running back Christian McCaffrey, LSU running back Leonard Fournette and Baylor running back Shock Linwood – have all decided to skip playing in their respective bowl game to focus on their NFL futures.
McCaffrey and Fournette are both expected to be top picks in the upcoming NFL draft.
Everyone in college football seems to have an opinion about the decisions the players are making. The players see it as a way to protect themselves from injury, while others say they are being selfish and should be there for their team.
TCU Horned Frogs head coach Gary Patterson said he predicted this trend years ago when the college football playoff was created.
"I'm not surprised at all," Patterson said. "I mean, it's their future. You had the guy in Miami (Willis McGahee) who was a first-round draft choice running back playing in the national championship, tears his ACL and goes on about his business."
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Still, Patterson says he has mixed emotions about players opting to sit out the bowl games.
"I understand it, but I don't understand it as a coach," he said.
