Oregon junior defensive lineman Arik Armstead will forgo his senior season of eligibility with the Ducks and enter the NFL draft, the Oregon athletic department announced Tuesday.

“After three years preparing with my teammates and coaches, I feel I’m ready to test myself at the next level,” Armstead told GoDucks.com. “All the support I’ve received from Coach (Don) Pellum and Coach (Ron) Aiken, the rest of the Oregon coaches and staff and in my academics has prepared me to make this jump.”

“I’ve had an awesome three years here,” Armstead went on to say, “and I’m so happy I made the decision to be a Duck. I want to thank my coaches, the academic support and athletic training staffs, the Eugene community and Duck fans everywhere for supporting me throughout my three years here. I’ll always be a Duck.”

In Monday’s College Football Playoff National Championship game loss to Ohio State, Armstead tied a team-high with nine tackles, which was four more than his previous career-high of five.

In addition, Armstead recovered an Ohio State fumble quarterback Cardale Jones in the third quarter, which was OSU’s fourth of the game.

Armstead, a 6-foot-8, 290-pound tackle, played a significant role in the Ducks’ push to the National Championship game. He finished the 2014 season with a career-high 46 tackles, good for tenth-best among Oregon defenders. He finished with five tackles during the Ducks’ game against Michigan State this season.

“Can see him go very, very high,” one AFC West GM told Yahoo Sports in December. “Has everything you want out of a (defensive lineman). Height, length, power, pass rush ability. Needs to show more consistency, but raw potential is very intriguing. First round.”

Follow Jonathan Hawthorne on Twitter @Jon_Hawthorne