Early Exits: Da'Quan Bowers, Clemson's blue-chip edge off the edge

See a full list of underclassmen who have declared for the draft.

No one has ever doubted the raw talent that made Clemson defensive end Da'Quan Bowers one of the top three or four incoming prospects in the country according to everyone with eyeballs in 2008, but after two inconsistent seasons as an underclassmen, the dreaded "bust" label loomed as he hit his junior year. Four months, 15 sacks and a dozen All-America nods later, Bowers has silenced all doubts, and officially announced his intention today to move on to the next level of skeptics as a likely top-10 pick in April's NFL Draft.

His emergence in 2010 was born in part of personal tragedy: Over the offseason, Bowers lost both his father and one of his pass-rushing mentors, former Tiger Gaines Adams, who died of an apparent heart attack in January. Bowers trimmed his 6-foot-4, 275-pound frame and returned a more mature player by all accounts, making his presence felt in almost every game. That list includes the near-upset at Auburn in September, one of Auburn's worst offensive efforts of the year in terms of both yards and points (24 points, 411 yards in regulation). Bowers had a season-high nine tackles on the Plains, with 3.5 tackles for loss and a sack against Cam Newton en route to a 27-24, overtime heartbreaker.

For the season, Bowers led the nation with 15 sacks and finished No.2 in tackles for loss, turning in at least two stops in opposing backfield in nine different games; he was also credited with 11 quarterback hurries, two forced fumbles and his first career interception. Those numbers earned him a landslide nomination to the All-ACC team, the conference's Defensive Player of the Year award and the Bronko Nagurski Trophy as the best defensive player in the nation – exactly what he was supposed to be when he arrived on campus three years ago. Clemson might have won some more games, but you can't go out on a much higher note than that.

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Matt Hinton is on Twitter: Follow him @DrSaturday.

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