Junior defensive end Corey Lemonier has declared for the NFL Draft and will not return for his final season at Auburn, according to ESPN's Joe Schad.
Lemonier finished second on the team with 5.5 sacks in 2012 and led the team with 12 hurries this past season, a year after leading the team with 9.5 sacks.
According a tweet from Joe Schad Monday, Dec. 31, Lemonier feels "ready for the next level."
Lemonier is the 24th-ranked player in the 2013 Draft, according to ESPN Scout's Inc.
The 6-4 243-pound prospect projects to fit in most defenses in the NFL.
Lemonier's size allows him the bulk necessary to play defensive end in a 4-3 defense such as Auburn's, however the junior's speed off the edge may land him a roster spot as an outside linebacker in a 3-4 defense.
Lemonier told Schad he thinks he'll be a third round pick.
For the rebuilding Tigers, Lemonier's departure leaves a gaping void in an already porous defensive line.
Junior defensive end Dee Ford led the team with six sacks in 2012 and is still with the team. However, his six sacks were half a sack more than the combined total of every other defensive lineman excluding Lemonier.
Now the pressure on Auburn's recruiters is even greater as the Tigers strive to keep the signatures of five-star defensive end recruits Carl Lawson and Dee Liner and four-star Tashawn Bower.
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