Matt L. Stephens

matthewstephens@coloradoan.com

It's not a recruiting trip. Mike Bobo isn't going to beg Rashard Higgins to stay.

What it is, the first-year CSU football coach said, is a chance to lay out all of the facts so his top wide receiver can make the most educated decision about whether he should turn pro or return for his senior season.

Bobo and Colorado State University wide receivers coach Alvis Whitted will fly out to Dallas on Wednesday to meet with Higgins and his mother, Jeanette Jackson, to discuss the 2014 All-American's future.

MORE: Higgins seems unlikely to return to CSU

Higgins, 6-foot-2, 190 pounds, is ranked as the No. 11 receiver in this year's draft class according to NFLDraftScout.com, and No. 14 by WalterFootball.com and CBSSports.com, which projects him to be drafted between the third and fourth rounds, should he forgo his final season of eligibility. He had 75 receptions for 1,062 yards and eight touchdowns this past year as a junior, following a 1,750-yard, 17-touchdown season as a sophomore in 2014.

"I want what's best for all of our players and all of our coaches. We want to provide as much information so that he can make an educated decision," Bobo said. "Obviously, we want Rashard to come back, but at the same time, I don't want to be so narrow-minded that I don't present all of the facts to him to make an educated decision about what he should do."

Bobo, who said earlier in the season he doesn't think a player should leave school early unless he's a first-round pick, wouldn't say what advice he'll give Higgins, nor would he comment on if he believes the junior is ready for the NFL. Whitted, an NFL veteran who played receiver for the Jacksonville Jaguars and Oakland Raiders from 1998 to 2006, should be able to provide keen insight for his pupil.

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Whitted, a seventh-round pick out of North Carolina State in the 1998 NFL draft, has had multiple conversations with Higgins as of late, Bobo said.

Eleven underclassmen wide receivers, including Biletnikoff Award winner Corey Coleman (Baylor) and finalist Laquon Treadwell (Mississippi), have already entered the 2016 NFL draft.

The deadline for Higgins to declare for the draft is Jan. 18.

For insight and analysis on athletics around Northern Colorado and the Mountain West, follow sports columnist Matt L. Stephens at twitter.com/mattstephens and facebook.com/stephensreporting.