Georgia cornerback Deandre Baker, who won the Jim Thorpe Award as the nation's top defensive back this season, will sit out the Allstate Sugar Bowl against Texas and is expected to begin preparing for the NFL draft.
Bulldogs coach Kirby Smart told reporters about Baker's situation Thursday after the team arrived at New Orleans' Louis Armstrong Airport. Baker said after the SEC championship game that he planned to play in Georgia's bowl game but since changed his mind. ESPN's Mel Kiper ranks Baker at No. 11 on his latest Big Board for the 2019 NFL draft.