Kevin Austin Jr. declares for NFL draft; Lenzy, Takacs to stick around

SOUTH BEND, Ind. (WNDU) - One day after Notre Dame’s season officially ended with a Fiesta Bowl collapse in Glendale, we’re already learning more about what their pass-catching corps will look like in 2022.

Kevin Austin Jr. announced via Instagram on Sunday that he’d be declaring for the 2022 NFL Draft. Austin led the team this season in receiving yards and tied for the lead in receiving touchdowns with tight end Michael Mayer. He was also 2nd on the team in catches behind Mayer.

The news is made a bit easier to bear by the return of wideout Braden Lenzy, who also made his intentions known Sunday on social media. Lenzy tweeted out a picture of himself, captioning it simply, “I’ll Be Back.”

In his 4th year at Notre Dame, Lenzy flashed big-play ability both through the air and on the ground. He finished the season with over 300 receiving yards, three receiving touchdowns, and an average yards-per-carry upwards of 13.

Also returning: tight end George Takacs. In an Instagram post captioned, “Run it back #year5″ Takacs let Irish fans know that he’d be suiting up for the blue and gold in the coming season.

There’s no official word yet on if wideout Avery Davis will return to give some added depth to the Irish at the receiver position. They’ll likely be looking for increased production from youngsters Deion Colzie and Lorenzo Styles.

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