2009 - Mark Sanchez declares for NFL draft
Despite opposition from head coach Pete Carroll, USC quarterback Mark Sanchez decides to skip his senior season and declare for the NFL draft.
"He just wants to. He just wants to go do it. It didn't matter what the facts were, he just wanted to go do it," Carroll says. "It was in his heart to go take this challenge on and that just overrode everything that was out there."
Sanchez threw for 3,965 yards and 41 touchdowns as a Trojan.
2007 - Adrian Peterson makes himself available for NFL draft
Oklahoma running back Adrian Peterson announces that he'll skip his senior season and enter the NFL draft.
In a statement, Peterson says that he considered his relationships with his Sooners teammates as a reason to return.
Peterson ran for 4,045 yards in three seasons at Oklahoma, ranking second behind only 1978 Heisman Trophy winner Billy Sims (4,118) and Hall of Famer Joe Washington (4,071) on the school's all-time rushing list.
2006 - Bears can't stop Steve Smith
Panthers wide receiver Steve Smith racks up a career-best 218 receiving yards and a pair of touchdowns to lead Carolina to a 29-21 victory over the Chicago Bears, earning a berth in the NFC Championship Game.
Smith also had 26 yards rushing, accounting for more than half of the Panthers' 434 yards of offense.
"It's amazing what he does," Panthers defensive end Brentson Buckner says of Smith. "He's just a great player. To have the kind of game he just had against a defense like the Chicago Bears ... I'm just glad he's on my team and I don't have to look at film and figure out a way to try to stop him."
Carolina goes on to fall to the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC Championship Game, 34-14.
Birthdays
1953 - Randy White
1957 - Marty Lyons
1959 - Kenny Easley
1961 - Harvey Salem
1974 - Mike Minter
1979 - Drew Brees
1985 - Brandon Mebane
