Penn State football tight end Pat Freiermuth will skip his final two years of eligibility and enter the 2021 NFL Draft.

In a statement posted on Twitter, Freiermuth said he’s been “dreaming of this moment” since he was a kid.

“It has been an absolute honor representing the blue and white these past three seasons,” Freiermuth wrote in a statement. “When I received my offer from Penn State, I knew right away it was the place I wanted to be.”

Freiermuth additionally thanked his coaches, teammates, and family for helping him reach his “full potential” at Penn State.

“Thank you to Coach Franklin for giving me the opportunity to play for this storied program and everything you’ve helped me accomplish along the way,” he said. “Like we always tell each other: ‘Family for life.'”

Despite undergoing season-ending shoulder surgery, Freiermuth made the most of Penn State’s unusual 2020 season. In four games, he racked up 23 catches for 310 yards and a touchdown in four games played and wound up receiving the Big Ten’s Kwalick-Clark Tight End of the Year Award.

“We sincerely appreciate Pat’s contributions to our football program and Penn State University,” head coach James Franklin wrote in a statement. “He is a person of high character who has perfectly exemplified our core values. From day one, Pat totally bought into our program and helped drive our culture forward.”

Freiermuth finishes his career with 92 grabs for 1,185 yards and 16 touchdowns. His final score, which came early in Penn State’s season-opening matchup with Indiana, helped him pass Mike Gesicki to post the most tight end touchdowns in program history.

Since his breakout 2019 season, NFL Draft experts have pegged Freiermuth as a bona fide first-round selection. However, it’s reasonable to believe an underperforming season cut short could stunt his first-round draft hype.

Saquon Barkley was the last Nittany Lion selected in the first round of the NFL Draft back in 2018. Could Freiermuth or former teammate Micah Parsons break the streak? Well, we’ll need to wait until April to find out.