Upon the conclusion of the Rose Bowl, Sanchez stated it would be "hard to say goodbye to . I don’t think I can do it." However, with the subsequent announcement that other NFL-caliber quarterbacks, such as Sam Bradford, Tim Tebow, and Colt McCoy had decided to stay in school, rumors arose that Sanchez would use the opportunity to enter the 2009 NFL Draft. On January 15, Sanchez announced his plans to forgo his final year of college eligibility and enter the 2009 NFL Draft, although he continued as a USC student and completed work on his degree in the spring of 2009 while preparing for the draft.