Ridley handling NFL quite well
INDIANAPOLIS — In going from LSU to the NFL’s New England Patriots in just a couple of months last year, rookie running back Stevan Ridley couldn’t help but notice how strikingly similar the two programs are.
While the transition from the college game to the pros can be a big and intimidating step for young players, it wasn’t that bad for Ridley when he elected to leave LSU following his junior season.
That’s because one word stood out to Ridley: Tradition.
“LSU is a school that has a lot of tradition,” Ridley said Tuesday during Super Bowl XLVI Media Day. “You look at the Patriots; it’s a team that has a lot of tradition. That’s what they both have in common.”
LSU has won two BCS national titles, including the 2007 season when Ridley was a part of the team, and the Patriots have three Super Bowl wins going into another title game on Sunday against the New York Giants.
As a result, Ridley doesn’t think it’s a coincidence he was able to make that leap from college to the pros and help his team get to the championship game in his first season.
Then again, the Natchez, Miss., native is still a little surprised at the success he’s had this season.
“You look at this game, and this is the pros, the big leagues,” he said. “You never know how you’ll do. One thing about LSU is they prepare you for the next level. For us, we know how to work hard down there. Coming into the league, hard work always pays off.”
Of course, Ridley credits another tradition — the long pipeline from the LSU campus to Foxborough, Mass. — with a little bit of that success.
Whether it’s Kevin Faulk, Jarvis Green, Randall Gay, Eric Alexander, Marquise Hill, or Rohan Davey, the Tigers always seem to have a strong presence with a Patriots’ franchise that’s playing in its fifth Super Bowl in 11 seasons.
Now in his 13th NFL season, Faulk has served as Ridley’s mentor during a rookie season that has included some ups and some downs.
“If I can have half the career (Faulk) did, I’ll be a happy man,” Ridley said. “At the same time, I’m trying to go out there and get 13 (years) out of it, too.
“He (Faulk) is teaching me those things, how to handle coach (Bill Belichick), how to handle the different things that come along with this game,” he added. “It’s more than just playing football. You have to be an adult. This is your job, and that’s what he’s teaching me … the right way to do things.”
The ups for Ridley, a third-round draft pick, included an strong training camp and preseason and 441 rushing yards during the regular season, just 226 yards fewer than team leader BenJarvus Green-Ellis.
On the other side of it is a fumble Ridley lost in a divisional playoff game that likely led the coaches to make him inactive for the AFC Championship game victory over the Baltimore Ravens on Jan. 22.
“You have to put it behind you quickly, or you’re going to find yourself on the bench and sitting down,” he said of not protecting the ball. “It was like I was building momentum and the carries were going up, but I had a fumble in the playoff game and you’re sat down and on the bench.”
Indeed, Ridley may have been on his way to emerging as the top option in a backfield rotation that also includes Green-Ellis and Danny Woodhead. But after rushing for 210 yards while getting 39 carries in the last three regular-season games, the fumble set him back.
“You have to learn from it and go on; that’s the game of football,” Ridley said. “I can’t sulk on it too much or get down about it. I just have to learn from it, realize my mistake and move forward from this point.”
Ridley said, without a doubt, the fumble had something to do with his benching for the AFC title game.
“I know what I did,” he said. “When you go back and look at your game film and you look over yourself, you can find your mistakes if you’re a good player. That’s part of it, that you have to admit to yourself when you’re wrong or messed up. You just learn from it, and build on it and move forward.”
Which, he hopes, is enough to get him back on the field against the Giants in Lucas Oil Stadium on Sunday night.
“I’m planning on being out there; everybody’s going to be suited up and ready to go,” Ridley said. “If the coaches call my number, I’ll be ready to go.”