Penn State football star receiver Jahan Dotson opts out of Outback Bowl, declares for draft
Penn State football’s most important offensive player is off to the National Football League. Senior wide receiver Jahan Dotson announced Monday evening he’ll be opting out of the Outback Bowl vs. Arkansas and declaring for the 2022 NFL Draft.
“It’s been nothing but special to wear the Blue & White these past four years,” Dotson’s statement read. “I will forever be thankful for the love Happy Valley has shown me and the people it has been brought into my life.”
Dotson could have returned for an extra season after the NCAA ruled that all athletes that participated in the 2020-21 athletic season would get an extra year of eligibility due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The senior wide receiver was the most crucial player on the offense and accounted for many of its successes in 2021. He racked up 1,182 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns on 91 receptions for the Nittany Lions to lead the team in all three categories.
He also set the program record for receiving yards in a game in an 11-catch, 242-yard and three touchdown performance against the Maryland Terrapins in early November.
Dotson is widely projected to go in the first two rounds of the upcoming draft.
He’s the first offensive player to announce he won’t return to Penn State in 2022 or play in the bowl game. The only other player on that side of the bowl to announce a decision either way is redshirt senior starting quarterback Sean Clifford, who announced he will be back for a sixth season.
This story was originally published December 27, 2021 at 6:18 PM.
