Former Arizona football and Washington State football quarterback Jayden de Laura declared for the 2024 NFL Draft on Thursday, the 22-year-old announced on his X account. After withdrawing his transfer to Texas State, de Laura will turn pro and go for his shot to play in the NFL.

In a lengthy statement, de Laura thanked the fans, teammates and coaches he worked with at both schools and said that playing college football was a dream come true. He'll now chase his lifelong dream of playing professionally.

“After much thought, prayer and encouragement by those closest to me, I have made the decision to officially declare for the 2024 NFL Draft,” de Laura said. “While I look forward to the challenging work ahead preparing for the game at the highest level (starting with Arizona Pro Day), I will always take the friendships and collegiate experience with me wherever I play next.”

In four college seasons de Laura started 32 games, an even 16 with Arizona and Washington State respectively. He started full-time for Washington State in 2021, leading the Huskies to a 7-5 record with 26 total touchdowns and nine interceptions.

The next season he was under center for all 12 games of Arizona's season. The Wildcats went 5-7 with de Laura throwing for 3,685 passing yards and 25 touchdowns. He added four more scores on the ground.

NFL Draft profile

NFL teams will look into de Laura's background, particularly the sexual assault case he was a part of. The quarterback was accused and later pleaded guilty to second-degree sexual assault stemming from a lawsuit filed in Dec. 2021.

While attending St. Louis High School in 2018, de Laura and a teammate of his on the school’s football team committed the crime in a school parking garage. A second settlement in the case was agreed upon in January after a judge rejected the amount of the initial settlement from Aug. 2023 due to de Laura's NIL deals.

It remains to be seen how the case will impact Jayden de Laura's football future, but he'll likely have to prove his worth to NFL teams to even be considered getting drafted in late April.