Ole Miss WR Laquon Treadwell declares for NFL draft

After a record-setting junior season, Ole Miss wide receiver Laquon Treadwell has decided to move on.

In a statement released Monday, Treadwell announced that he will forgo his senior season and declare for the 2016 NFL draft.

“After sitting down with my family, we have decided it is time for me to take the next step in my career and enter the 2016 NFL draft,” Treadwell said. “It's always been a dream of mine to play in the NFL, and I can't thank my teammates, coaches and our great fans enough for their unbelievable support since the first day I stepped foot on campus. No matter how far life may take us, I will always be an Ole Miss Rebel. God bless.”

Treadwell caught 82 passes for 1,153 yards and 11 touchdowns this season – all program single-season records – en route to first team All-SEC honors. He also set Ole Miss records for 100-yard receiving games (six), catches per game (6.31), receiving yards per game (88.7), consecutive games with a touchdown catch (six), consecutive games with 100 receiving yards (five) and most catches in a game (14 vs. Memphis) this season.

“It was an honor to have coached Laquon, and our family will miss him greatly,” said Ole Miss head coach Hugh Freeze. “The commitment that he and others in his class made to our program three years ago has changed the culture of Ole Miss. I’m so proud of what he accomplished here, and I look forward to seeing him continue to grow and shine as a player and a person.”

Treadwell was a five-star recruit in the Rebels’ 2013 class and made an immediate impact as a freshman, totaling 72 catches for 608 yards and five touchdowns to win the SEC Freshman of the Year.

He was on pace for another big season in 2014 until he suffered a grisly leg injury in the Rebels’ ninth game against Auburn. Before the season-ending injury, he hauled in 48 passes for 632 yards and five touchdowns.

Overall, Treadwell leaves Ole Miss with a school-record 202 receptions. That mark is also the seventh-highest in SEC history.

Treadwell is the second Ole Miss underclassman to declare for the draft, joining defensive lineman Robert Nkemdiche. Both are expected to be first round picks.