College football players go pro early all the time. They have different reasons for doing so, be it they have no chance to grow in college, they already have their degree, or they can’t turn down the potential money anymore. One of those players who went pro for Notre Dame was running back Tony Jones Jr.
Jones left South Bend after his redshirt junior season, leaving a year of eligibility on the table. He recently went on to struggle at the NFL Combine, and will undoubtedly fall to the late rounds of the NFL draft.