Pitt QB Kenny Pickett Declares for NFL Draft, Won’t Play in Peach Bowl

The Panther star will not play against Michigan State in the upcoming Peach Bowl.

Pitt quarterback Kenny Pickett announced on Thursday that he will forego playing in the Peach Bowl against Michigan State to begin training for the 2022 NFL Draft.

“To the University of Pitt, thank you for all that you have given me over the past five years,” Pickett wrote in a tweet. “Coach Narduzzi, thank you for being by my side throughout my entire career and teaching me life lessons every step of the way.

“One of the best moments of my football career was standing on stage with you, the team and our ACC Championship trophy. I will never forget our victory and everything it took to get us there.”

Forever a Pitt Man #H2P pic.twitter.com/fq0Sw06dIa

— Kenny Pickett (@kennypickett10) December 17, 2021

Pickett, Heisman Trophy finalist this season, left his mark on the field, throwing for 4,319 yards, 42 touchdowns and seven interceptions while completing 81.5 percent of his passes. He was Pitt‘s first Heisman finalist since Larry Fitzgerald in 2003. 

The 23-year-old also pulled off the “fake slide” in the ACC Championship game, prompting the NCAA to change the rules.

The ACC Player of the Year recently received high praise from an AFC executive saying that “he’s a good version of Johnny Football” in reference to Johnny Manziel, who won the 2012 Heisman Trophy at Texas A&M. 

Pickett joins Michigan State’s Kenneth Walker III—who finished sixth in Heisman Trophy voting—as players who will not play in the upcoming Peach Bowl.