Trent Richardson Scouting Report

Not too surprisingly, Alabama did not lose a step despite the departure of Mark Ingram to the NFL. Everyone already knew that Richardson was the real deal. Even playing behind Ingram, Richardson had 751 yards and eight touchdowns on 145 carries as a freshman and he went for 700 yards and six scores on 112 carries as a sophomore.

Finally the feature back in Tuscaloosa as a junior, Richardson rushed 283 times for 1679 yards (5.9 average) and 21 touchdowns as he led the Crimson Tide to the National Championship. A decent receiver out of the backfield (although he can improve in that department and his hands could get better), the Pensacola, FL native also made 29 receptions for 338 yards and three more scores. He had 68 receptions for his career.

Richardson stands at just 5'11'', but he is a load to bring down at 224 pounds (not entirely unlike Maurice Jones-Drew of the Jaguars, although obviously not quite that short). He generally runs around a 4.50 in the 40-yard dash and has been clocked as fast as 4.42 from that distance. He did not run at the combine due to minor knee surgery, but hopefully that won't detract any suitors. Richardson has especially impressive breakaway speed, though he sometimes runs east-west too often as opposed to north-south. Richardson left early and he will be a first-round selection in April's draft. Don't be surprised if a team trades up to select Richardson in the top 10.