NFL Draft News: Sedrick Van Pran-Granger reportedly returning to Georgia

One of the top centers expected to be in the 2023 NFL Draft has elected to return to college

The deadline to declare for the 2023 NFL Draft was Monday, January 16th but players would have 72 hours after that to decide to return to college if that was something they wanted to do. One of those players did decide to skip this year’s NFL Draft and return to college.

According to ESPN’s Jordan Reid, center Sedrick Van Pran-Granger is going to return for another season with the Georgia Bulldogs. Sedrick Van Pran-Granger also tweeted that he was returning to Athens.

He has been a key part of the Bulldogs’ offensive line and started 28 games total over the past two seasons at center. The return of Van Pran-Granger will be a big boost for a Bulldogs’ offensive line that likely will also be losing Broderick Jones, Warren McClendon, and Warren Ericson with all three declaring for the NFL Draft.

Who is now the top center in the 2023 NFL Draft?

While Sedrick Van Pran-Granger may not have been the clear top center in this year’s NFL Draft at this point, it certainly could have changed over the next few months. He is an excellent center and it wouldn’t have been surprising to see him be the first player drafted at his position.

The player who most likely emerges as the best center in this year’s NFL Draft is John Michael Schmitz, who played for the University of Minnesota. He has been their starting center for roughly the past two and a half seasons and is a big part of their success on the ground.

Another player to watch is Luke Wyler, who was the starting center for Ohio State the past two seasons. However, there is probably a sizable gap between Wypler and John Michael Schmitz, and teams that need centers in this year’s NFL Draft may reach a bit to select John Michael Schmitz.