oregon tight end kenyon sadik He will leave the program early to declare for the NFL Draft, sources told ESPN Tuesday night.
Mel Kiper’s No. 1-ranked tight end and the No. 10 overall player in the 2026 draft, Saadiq was a key figure in the Ducks’ offense this year. Saadiq led all tight ends in college football with eight touchdown catches this year. He was the Ducks’ second-leading pass-catcher with 560 yards, as he caught 51 passes for an Oregon team that finished the season 13–2 and returned to the College Football Playoff.
Saadiq, 20, finished his career with five catches and 29 yards in a 56-22 loss to the Hoosiers in the College Football Playoff semifinals last week.
Coach Dan Lanning said this season, “Kenyon is a special player, man. I think we’re fortunate that we have the best team in the country.” “His play has shown that. We’re better when he’s with us. And of course, he’s a tough guy to defend, isn’t he?”
In his career, Saadiq had 80 catches for 892 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns, all with the Ducks.
Even with Saadiq’s expected departure, Oregon remains in good shape at the tight end position. Ducks ensure recent comeback Jamari JohnsonJoe will be one of the projected top tight ends for the 2027 NFL Draft.
They also have two key newcomers, Penn State transfers Andrew Olesh and incoming freshman Kendre’ Harrison, who is ESPN’s top-rated tight end recruit for 2026 and ESPN’s No. 14 overall player in the upcoming class.
Saadiq is expected to perform well at the NFL Combine, as he is 6 feet 3 inches, 245 pounds and is so athletic that Oregon has designed run plays for him. He ran the ball for a duck nine times in his career.
His top performances this year included two touchdown catches against USC and eight catches for 96 yards against Rutgers. In 2024, he caught two touchdowns against Penn State in the Big Ten title game and finished the year with 24 catches for 308 yards.
Sadiq tops a strong group of underdogs in this class, which also includes Ohio State max claireVanderbilt’s Ellie StowersTexas’ jack andrews and of cincinnati Joe Royer.
