TAMPA – Bacarri Rambo continues to call himself “50-50” on whether to leave for the NFL draft. But the evaluation from the league’s advisory board provided a window into the thinking for the Georgia junior safety.

Rambo said he received a third-round grade from the NFL board, which advises underclassmen before they make their decision on whether to leave or stay.
The grade clearly disappointed Rambo, who was named a first-team All-American by the AP.

“They just watch film. They don’t know my character, they don’t know what I do to come out,” Rambo said.

He added later that the third-round grade “just makes me work even harder.”

“Since I’ve been here I’ve learned to accept criticism,” Rambo said. “I just take that and just learn from it. It just makes me a better person, a stronger person. I just take that and run with it, and it just motivates me, because it just makes me work even harder.”

Then he was asked if he came back if he felt it would lift him to first or second round territory.

“Of course I would. If I could back there’s still plays to be made,” Rambo said. “So of course I could work myself into the first or second round.”

Georgia senior cornerback Brandon Boykin also received a third-round grade last year when he was thinking about leaving early. He was asked how that entered into his decision to stay for his senior year.

“There’s no guarantee. Leaving as a junior, not getting your degree, not knowing where you’ll end up. All of that for me was scary,” Boykin said. “Fortunately for me I had my immediate family there just to help me. The season that we had last year was very disappointing, so I wanted to come back and improve all of that. So I think that we did a good job of that last year.”

Boykin said he has spoken with Rambo, who approached him to solicit advice on his upcoming decision.

“He knows that whatever people tell him, as far as him being able to go first round, second round, none of that matters, it’s all up to him as far as what he does and how he shows and performs,” Boykin said. “I just told him to make the best decision he could based off the family members and the people that he trusts. He’ll do that.”

Rambo is one of several Georgia players who is mulling the jump. Tight end Orson Charles also applied to the draft advisory board, but said he hasn’t heard back yet.

“I think the reason I haven’t heard from them is I told them, Call me after the bowl. I’m really focused on this bowl right now. Then I’ll talk to my family as far as what we should do and then after that.”