FAYETTEVILLE — Treylon Burks has played his last game in an Arkansas uniform.
A junior receiver from Warren and a first-team All-SEC selection by the league’s coaches and Associated Press this season, Burks announced Wednesday in a post to his Twitter account that he is opting out of the Razorbacks’ game against Penn State in the Outback Bowl and declaring for the upcoming NFL Draft.
“I have had many restless nights praying and talking with my family regarding this decision,” Burks wrote. “With that being said I have decided to opt out of the bowl game and forego my senior season and declare for the NFL Draft. Other than representing my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, there has been no greater honor in my life than representing Warren and the entire State of Arkansas these past three years.
“I may be leaving the state, but Arkansas will always be home and I will never stop calling those Hogs.”
Burks is widely considered a potential first-round draft pick next spring. Sports Illustrated, NBC Sports, CBS Sports, Pro Football Network and The Sporting News all recently projected the receiver to be selected in the first round and as high as No. 11 overall.
He is in line to become the first Arkansas receiver drafted since Cobi Hamilton in 2013 and fifth since 2012. Additionally, he would be the fourth Razorback from his hometown of Warren, joining Greg Childs, Jarius Wright and Chris Gragg.
If NBC Sports’ preseason prediction (No. 16 overall) comes to fruition, Burks would be the program’s highest-drafted receiver in 60 years.
Burks closes his career with the Razorbacks with 2,399 receiving yards, good for sixth most in program history, and 19 touchdown catches. In 2021, he totaled 1,104 yards and became just the fourth Arkansas receiver to surpass the 1,000-yard mark in a season.
His 11 receiving touchdowns during the regular season tied Marcus Monk for second most in a season by a Razorback.
Burks finished with 100-plus yards receiving in half of Arkansas’ regular-season games and recorded 10 such games in his three seasons. Among his top performances was a 10-catch, 206-yard game at Missouri in 2020 and a season-high 179 yards and 2 touchdowns on 8 receptions against No. 2 Alabama on Nov. 20.
He caught multiple touchdown passes in a game four times.
“He's the definition of greatness,” Razorbacks linebacker Bumper Pool said Nov. 26. “He's got such a great mindset. People that have the talent that Treylon has, they can take it and go so many different directions with it. He's such a great person, such a great worker.
“He's one of the greatest Hogs to put the jersey on, and I hope that everyone realizes that.”
Burks was a shining light amid program turmoil in 2019, landing on the All-SEC rookie team after becoming the fifth true freshman in program history to finish with 400-plus receiving yards. He was also a second-team All-SEC selection as a return specialist
He totaled 226 kickoff return yards and 130 yards on punt returns, then the most by a Razorback in a season since Joe Adams in 2011. The following year, he broke out and truly emerged as of one of the elite skill players in the SEC.
Burks had team highs in catches (51), receiving yards (820) and touchdowns (7), averaging better than 91 yards per game against an SEC-only schedule. In 2021, Burks finished fourth in the SEC in receiving yards and yards per reception (16.7), and tied for second in touchdowns.
“He's just a baller,” linebacker Hayden Henry said Nov. 26. “The guy is just a freak of nature — bottom line. He goes up and makes contested catches. One-on-one balls, he's going to win. To see his progression coming in as a freshman to see where he's at now, he's constantly getting better.
“You get him the ball, usually good things happen.”
He is the first Arkansas player to opt out of the team’s bowl game.