Sad news for Clemson Tigers: I want to leave..

Ngata talks about her hopes for the future and her “sad” decision to leave Clemson.

Moving on to the next phase of his life, Joseph Ngata intends to play in the NFL.

Ngata declared, “Only God knows where I’ll go.” “Everything that occurs does so. I don’t care where I end up as long as I have a chance to demonstrate my abilities as a member of a team.

But the former Clemson receiver didn’t come to this decision to quit college so quickly.

Ngata had already played with the Tigers for four seasons, however some of those were cut short due to injuries. The 6-foot-3, 223-pound player could have returned for a fifth year in the autumn by using his COVID year, and according to Ngata, “a lot of people” urged him to go back to school.

He moved across the country from Folsom, California, to Clemson in 2019 as a blue-chip recruit, and since then, he has become fond of the university. All of that troubled him after the season, but in the end, Ngata, who turned 22 in January, thought it was time to bid a challenging farewell.

Ngata stated, “I pray about every decision I make.” Talk about it with my family. Talk about it with my pals. Even if a lot of people wished for me to return, I ultimately cannot undo what I done. Not able to retract anything. All I’m doing is looking forward and moving forward. The best is not yet upon us. Looking backward isn’t really going to be beneficial or helpful to me.

“It was a letdown to go.” Even though I felt that it was the right thing for me to do, I was sad as I was leaving. I just went after doing what I had to do. avoiding looking back. My confidence in myself is my only strength.

Ngata stated that the most difficult aspect of leaving Clemson is parting with the relationships he has made with both people and a location. He claimed that after training in Miami, this revelation struck him hard when he arrived back on campus for Clemson’s Pro Day earlier this week.

“I just love it here, and all of my friends stayed,” he remarked. “Upon my return, I had the impression that I was carrying out my duty. On Monday, as I was in the bistro, I realized that this was my assigned task. It simply seemed to be my way of life. Everything else seems so alien to me. It feels like home here.

“Leaving friends is sad, but at the end of the day, business is business.” All I have to do is attend to business.

This entails Ngata seeking to position himself as a draft pick, something he has done all possible to try to do this offseason. Before competing in the East-West Shine Bowl in February, he took part in the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl in January. Earlier this month, he left for the scouting combine in Indianapolis before arriving back at his most comfortable place on Tuesday for pro day.

Ngata participated in a few events on pro day, but he mostly stood on his combine testing results, which included a 4.54 40-yard sprint. In Clemson’s indoor practice facility, he not only participated in position exercises with representatives from all 32 NFL teams watching, but he also set the third-fastest agility time (4.35 seconds).

All I wanted was to glide. Ngata expressed her desire to be sharp. “I know it sounds horrible, but I just wanted to prove to them that I could do what I do on Tuesday without having any goals set.”

Ngata completed the day as planned, which wasn’t always the case during his time as a college student. In 2020, he played in just seven games due to an abdominal injury. The next season, Ngata missed four more games due to a late-season foot ailment and the COVID-19 protocol. He was a junior.

Ngata enjoyed a perfect health report heading into his final season with the Tigers, setting career highs in receiving yards (526) and catches (41) and scoring two touchdowns on receptions in 14 games. Despite this, Ngata made the decision to focus heavily on the pre-draft showcase circuit this year to provide organizations with a more comprehensive understanding of his skill set, given his fairly limited game tape.

He declared, “I was ready to just ball.” “I wanted NFL scouts to see firsthand, in person, and against the strongest opposition possible. I was moving quickly and physically. I wanted them to have a close-up look at everything.

In the process, Ngata expressed his hope that he has allayed any residual worries people may have about his health.

Many teams question me about ailments, but MRIs cleared me of everything, he stated. “My body is ready to go. 100%. I was ready to do whatever they wanted to see. And I succeeded in doing it. I fared well in the end.

“I look fantastic. I feel fantastic. I’m prepared to move on and continue improving my physique.

Ngata will travel back to California to continue training, he said. During the pre-draft process, he named the New York Jets as a team that has shown him a lot of attention. After the three-day draft concludes on April 29, Ngata hopes to continue his journey to an NFL city, with the possibility of a sporadic return to Clemson.

“I intend to make every effort to return here as often as I can,” he declared. “I am welcome if I am received well. I’m going to arrive in a hoodie if not.