Texas A&M’s senior class was instrumental in the team’s outstanding 2020 season, which ended with a 9-1 overall record after beating North Carolina 41-27 in the Orange Bowl, and now those veteran players are reaping the rewards of the success they shared on the field this season.

The latest senior to take advantage of his success and springboard into an NFL career is linebacker Buddy Johnson, who announced his decision to turn pro on Friday.

Normally these announcements wouldn’t be necessary, but the NCAA has allowed seniors to return next season, leaving some of these decisions up in the air around the SEC. For Johnson, the opportunity at the NFL was too much to pass up.

“I hope I was a great teammate to my brother and a great presentation of this program,” Johnson wrote in his farewell to Texas A&M. “I will forever bleed maroon and white, and I can’t wait to see the program progress even further. Never forget, the storm is coming!”

Johnson’s decision comes after fellow seniors Kellen Mond, Dan Moore Jr., Ryan McCollum and Jared Hocker all made the decision to leave Texas A&M for the upcoming NFL draft.

The Aggie linebacker leaves College Station after racking up 209 tackles, 23.5 tackles for loss, 5.5 sacks, an interception and three forced fumbles during his career.