TAMPA | Fresh off his record-breaking performance in the Outback Bowl, Noah Igbinoghene has a serious decision to make.

Will the Auburn cornerback return for his senior season or declare for the 2020 NFL Draft?

“I’m going to sit down, talk to my coaches and my family and make the best decision for me,” said Igbinoghene shortly after the Tigers 31-24 loss to Minnesota. “I consider myself a high — I’m not going to go if it’s not worth it, so that’s just how it is.”

Igbinoghene said he’d like to have a decision in the next couple of days. Academics are important to him and his parents and he’s approximately two semesters from earning a degree from the College of Science and Mathematics.

Igbinoghene, who also competes in the triple jump and long jump for the track team, had the first kickoff return for a touchdown in Auburn bowl history when he took one back 96 yards to give the Tigers a 10-3 lead midway through the first quarter.

“It was a big hole, one cut and just ran. It was easy,” Igbinoghene said. “It meant everything, just the last game of the season, wouldn’t want it any way else. I wish we could’ve won the game, though, because it doesn’t really matter to me the fact that I got a touchdown because we didn’t win the game, so it really doesn’t matter. I’m glad I got to put points on the board, though.”

If Igbinoghene elects to return, he believes the 2020 secondary can be even better than this year’s despite losing three senior starters in Jeremiah Dinson, Daniel Thomas and Javaris Davis.

“Honestly, I think we can be better than we were any type of year,” he said. “We have big safeties in Jamien and Smoke, then me and Roger and Tutt. We have a lot of new kids coming in, stuff like that. We just got to continue to work. We’ve been building on something every single year ever since the new coaching staff came in, and so we got a key to build on. They’re going to be better—we’re going to be better than we were these past couple years next year.”

Igbinoghene had four tackles and a tackle-for-loss against the Golden Gophers. He finished his junior season with 42 tackles, 31 solo, and seven pass breakups. The former wide receiver, who switched to cornerback for the 2018 season, now has two career kickoff returns for touchdowns.

“Ups and downs all season. Of course I didn’t expect this (loss) to happen, but shoot, I wouldn’t change it for nobody else, none of my teammates, none of my coaches,” Igbinoghene said. “It was an amazing year, not only for myself, but my team as well. We got closer as teammates. That’s all that really matters. Football is a game, and we got life outside of this. It was a good season to me, though.”