IOWA CITY – The University of Iowa football program announced Friday that junior tight end Noah Fant will forego his remaining eligibility and declare for the 2019 NFL Draft. He will not play in Iowa’s upcoming bowl game.
“We are disappointed Noah will not be finishing the season with his teammates,” said Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz. “He is a tremendous athlete and we wish him the best as he pursues his goal of playing in the NFL.”
Fant met with Ferentz on Wednesday to discuss and share his future plans.
“Thank you, coach Ferentz and coach Doyle for the opportunity and honor to represent the black and gold — for helping me grow physically and mentally — more than I thought possible,” said Fant, in a message written to Hawkeye Nation.
The Omaha, Nebraska, native has been a productive player for the Hawkeyes and was a semifinalist for the John Mackey Award. In 2018, he totaled 39 receptions for 519 yards and a team-leading seven touchdown receptions.
Fant has 1,083 career receiving yards and 19 career touchdown catches– the most by an Iowa tight end and third-best among Big Ten tight ends. Fant this week was named first-team All-Big Ten by league coaches.
Iowa (8-4) is bowl eligible for the 17th time in the last 18 seasons. Iowa’s bowl destination and opponent will be announced Sunday.
Hope it works out for him. I think he would have built more stock in himself if he would have stuck around another year, he just keeps getting better and would garner a lot more money in the NFL if he had an even better year for the Hawks next year. Maybe he knows more about what next year is going to look like than we do.