Saying he hopes to help his family's financial situation, Nebraska starting cornerback Fabian Washington said Sunday he will skip his senior season and enter the National Football League Draft.

Washington, a native of Bradenton, Fla., started at left cornerback each of the past three seasons, leading the team in pass breakups all three years.

"I had a lot of fun playing in that red and white uniform," Washington said from Tampa, Fla., about 20 miles north of Bradenton. "I'm leaving behind a lot of good friends. That's what makes it a hard decision. You leave behind your closest friends."

However, Washington said, his family "is not in the best situation financially," and an NFL career could help that plight. He has retained an agent, New Jersey-based Brian Mackler.

"I would like to get my mom an apartment to live in, and I can't do that by going back to school," said Washington, who said he's roughly three semesters from obtaining a bachelor's degree in sociology.

Washington said in November he planned to return to Nebraska for his final season. However, he said, the murder last week of a close friend in Tampa played a major role in his decision to leave.

Washington also expressed concern about his 18-year-old brother, Breon, living in an area that is fraught with gang violence.

"I want to get my brother out of that area," Washington said.

 Washington recently applied for a pre-draft evaluation by an NFL advisory panel, a way of gauging which round a player might be selected.

"I'm not going to disclose the round they told me, but I'm satisfied with it," said Washington, rated the nation's No. 6 cornerback in The Sporting News' 2004 preseason college football edition.

As of early Sunday night, Washington hadn't informed Nebraska coaches of his decision.

"I called Coach (Kevin) Cosgrove two days ago, and he hasn't returned the call," Washington said, referring to the first-year Husker defensive coordinator. "He probably has been a little busy preparing for next season, and I understand that."

Washington becomes the eighth scholarship player to leave the NU program since the beginning of the 2004 season. A few players have expressed dissatisfaction with the way they were treated by Nebraska first-year head coach Bill Callahan and his staff.

Asked to characterize his relationship with Husker coaches, Washington said, "I'd say it was a pretty good relationship. The coaches aren't the reason I'm leaving."

In helping Nebraska to a 5-6 finish this season, the 5-foot-11, 180-pound Washington ranked second on the squad with three interceptions, pushing his career total to 11, tied for fourth on the school's all-time chart.

Washington recorded 15 pass breakups in 2004 and finished his career with 38, tied for fourth on the Husker career list.

In a season when Nebraska's secondary struggled — the Huskers ranked 50th nationally in pass-efficiency defense after leading the nation in 2003 — Washington arguably played his best game against Kansas. He broke up six passes, got  an interception and made three tackles.

In 2003, Washington was a third-team All-Big 12 pick by conference coaches after breaking up 10 passes and intercepting four.

Widely regarded as the top cornerback to come out of the Florida high school ranks in 2001, Washington made an immediate impact for the Huskers. He set school records for a freshman with 13 breakups and four interceptions. He earned second-team freshman All-America honors from The Sporting News.

When Washington arrived on the Nebraska campus, he made it clear he wanted to play in the NFL someday.

Now he'll try to make the jump.

"I'm excited," he said. "But I know I'm still going to have to put in a lot of hard work."

Washington, as is the case with many top-level college players, had agents calling his cell phone throughout the season.

"I tried not to listen until the season was over," Washington said. "When the season ended, that's when I had to make some hard decisions."

Reach Steven M. Sipple at 473-7440 or ssipple@journalstar.com.