Oregon Defensive End Kayvon Thibodeaux Declares for 2022 NFL Draft

The star defensive end for the Ducks has officially opted out of the Alamo Bowl and will prepare for the draft.

Author:
John Rustik
Publish date:
Dec 7, 2021 12:40 AM EST

While the Ducks seemingly will do everything they can to prepare for the Alamo Bowl on Dec. 29 against Oklahoma, their best player won't be with them as Kayvon Thibodeaux declared for the NFL Draft and opted out of his senior season.

While the coaching change seemingly solidified his decision to skip the bowl game, it seemed he had made his decision following the crushing blow dealt by Utah in the Pac-12 championship. While he might have played if the Ducks won and made a New Year’s Six Bowl, playing in a non-NY6 bowl isn't worth risking an injury.

Before Cristobal announced his move to Miami, Thibodeaux had taken to his Twitter and his Instagram. Following the loss in the Pac-12 championship, he included a picture on his Instagram story that had the caption “The end of an Era”. His decision had already been made up. He also took to twitter.

“Love y’all... till the end & back,” Thibodeaux tweeted that Friday.

He also tweeted “Don’t wait to love ‘em, they might not be here," on Friday.

As reported by ESPN's Adam Schefter, the Duck star is signing with Wasserman for on-field representation and Grand Sports Management will handle his marketing, media and business endeavors. He will be training at Athletic Gaines before the draft to make sure he’s ready to go.

Thibodeaux’s defensive efforts will make him one of the most influential defensive players in recent memory, if not Oregon history. He's the highest-rated recruit the program has ever signed, and his play was nothing short of amazing.

Throughout his college career at Oregon, he earned plenty of prestigious awards, like Pac-12 Defensive Freshman of the Year and All-Pac-12 honors in 2020. He was also rewarded with the MVP honor of the 2020 Pac-12 Championship Game against USC.

Despite battling injuries at times during his third year in Eugene, he still managed to make an impact on the Oregon defense.

Thibodeaux will end his career at Oregon with 82 solo tackles, 19 sacks and three forced fumbles. He's set a new standard for the defensive expectations at Oregon, and with stars like Brandon Dorlus and Bradyn Swinson rising up among the Ducks defensive line, it seems that he has left Oregon in good hands.

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