Ridley Runs To The NFL

LSU's leading rusher and starting running back Stevan Ridley will forgo his senior year, and enter the NFL draft. Ridley claimed it was the toughest decision he's ever made. He made his announcement in a video on his facebook page which can be seen here. Jim Kleinpeter of the Times Picayune has more.

"It was a tough decision but I've decided to go ahead and give it a shot," he said. "Part of me felt like I was leaving my teammates, my brothers. Part of me realized this was the opportunity of a lifetime for me to pursue my dream. Every kid's dream is to play professional football and I feel when you have that shot, you need to take it when you can, work your way up from there."

Ridley led LSU with 1,042 yards rushing and 14 touchdowns on an SEC-high 225 carries this season.

Ridley is the second LSU underclassman to enter the draft. Cornerback Patrick Peterson announced earlier this week that he was leaving LSU.

It's the second loss of the day for the LSU offense, which said goodbye to coordinator Gary Crowton, who has taken the same job at University of Maryland.

"We're going to miss him," LSU quarterback Jordan Jefferson said of Ridley. "But we've still go a lot of good backs and we can still have a great season next year."

Read more: http://www.nola.com/lsu/index.ssf/2011/01/lsu_football_player_stevan_rid.html

Jefferson is right, LSU is stacked with solid, young running backs. Spencer Ware, Michael Ford, and Alfred Blue will all be sophomores next year. Ridley had a great year, and will most likely be a fifth or sixth round draft pick in the 2011 NFL draft.