Penn State center Juice Scruggs is declaring for the NFL Draft, and his last game will be Jan. 2 against Utah in the Rose Bowl.
🌹🌹🌹#HessStrong pic.twitter.com/gXdVEvElkd
— Supa (@JuiceScruggs) December 24, 2022
The fifth-year center announced via Twitter Friday night that he’ll play in the bowl game, but won’t be back for the 2023 season.
In his statement, Scruggs thanked God for “blessing me with the opportunity to live out my dreams” and his family and supporters for “the sacrifices you all have made.”
He also thanked Penn State for “accepting me as a young, 18-year-old kid with open arms.”
”We have stuck as a family,” Scruggs’s statement read, “through the ups and downs, and I am forever grateful to be a Nittany Lion. Penn State has given me an amazing education which I am beyond blessed to have.”
Scruggs proceeded to thank head coach James Franklin, offensive line coach Phil Trautwein and the rest of Penn State’s coaching staff.
Lastly, Scruggs thanked his teammates.
”To my brothers, the relationships and bonds we built in the locker room are forever,” the statement read. “Thank you for choosing me as your captain. It was truly an honor.
Scruggs was a team captain this past season, and firmly established himself as a team leader on and off the field. On the field, Scruggs was Penn State’s starting center and made third-team All-Big Ten in the coaches vote and the honorable mention team in the media’s vote. Before the season, Scruggs’s quarterback, Sean Clifford, called him the “keystone” of Penn State’s offense.
Scruggs’s football career almost ended due to a serious car accident in the spring of 2019. He ended up fighting and becoming one of Penn State’s most important players.
“He’s been through a lot at Penn State,” Clifford told reporters via Zoom the week of Penn State’s season opener at Purdue. “So to say now that he’s in a good spot is an understatement.”
