Florida’s tight end Kyle Pitts is skipping his senior season and won’t be playing in the Gators’ upcoming bowl game to prepare for the 2021 NFL draft, he announced on social media on Sunday.
Pitts, a junior from Philadelphia, is considered a potential top 10 pick.
“After much prayer and consideration and talking to my family, I will be skipping my senior year and stepping into the 2021 NFL draft rather than playing the bowl game,” said Pitts wrote on Twitter. “I strive to make my dreams of playing in the NFL come true. But I will always be a Gator.”
Pitts (6-foot-6, 239 pounds) is rated the # 1 bottleneck by ESPN design analysts Mel Kiper Jr. and Todd McShay. Kiper ranks Pitts as the number 7 prospect. McShay ranks 10th.
Pitts has 43 catches for 770 yards with 12 touchdowns in eight games this season for the Gators, who are slated to be selected for a New Years six-bowl game on Sunday. He had seven receptions for 129 yards with a result in a 52:46 loss to No. 1 Alabama in the SEC championship game on Saturday night.