What happened to Jeff Samardzija? How Notre Dame's two-way star choosing a life of baseball over football impacted the MLB & NFL Draft

Jeff Samardzija was a highly-touted prospect in both football and baseball.

Samardzija was a wide receiver for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in college football and also was a starting pitcher for the school. He excelled at both and had options to opt for either NFL or MLB.

As both draft years crept closer, Samardzija decided to opt for baseball and not continue his NFL career.

Jeff Samardzija picked baseball over football

The decision between baseball and football was a tough one as on Mel Kiper's big board, he had Samardzija ranked in his top 10 and was considered a lock to go in the first round of the 2007 NFL draft.

Samardzija was a big receiver with great hands and all his college teams praised him as the best receiver they have played with. Yet, shockingly, he decided to go with baseball and was drafted in the fifth round of the 2006 draft.

Although being picked in the MLB draft by the Chicago Cubs, Jeff Samardzija rose quickly up the minor leagues and made it to the majors in 2008.

Jeff Samardzija went 80-106 in the MLB.

He was therefore not selected in the NFL draft but likely would've been the second receiver taken behind Calvin Johnson. The receivers picked after Johnson were the likes of Ted Ginn Jr., Dwayne Bowe, and Robert Meachem.

Samardzija did enjoy success in MLB, playing 13 seasons in the big leagues. Overall, he went 80-106 with a 4.15 ERA,pitching 1645.1 innings and striking out 1449 batters. He also was an All-Star in 2014 but unfortunately never won the World Series.

When he made the decision to pick baseball over football, a big reason was his health once he retired. Jeff Samardzija knew football careers don't last long while in the MLB, he was able to make over $100 million while enjoying a solid career.

However, Samardzija's NFL career will still be one of the biggest what-ifs for college football fans across the country.

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