Ad Disclosure
Jacksonville takes Leonard Fournette with No. 4 pick in NFL Draft
By Chris Wright
Published:
The drought is over.
Leonard Fournette became the first LSU running back in more than a decade to be taken in the first round of the NFL Draft.
Fournette, a junior, was taken No. 4 overall by the Jacksonville Jaguars on Thursday night. LSU hadn’t produced a first-round running back since Joseph Addai went No. 30 overall in 2006. Fournette is the eighth Tigers RB taken in the first round.
Fournette became the 10th SEC running back selected in the top 10 since Bo Jackson went No. 1 overall in 1986.
He left Baton Rouge a year early, finishing with 3,830 career yards. Only three Tigers rushed for more.
In 2015, he passed Herschel Walker’s SEC record for yards in a season, finishing with a program-best 1,953 yards.
He’ll be remembered in Baton Rouge for his breathtaking runs that combined breakaway speed and brutality, two traits that helped him set an LSU record with five 200-yard games.
Managing Editor
A 30-time APSE award-winning editor with previous stints at the Miami Herald, The Indianapolis Star and News & Observer, Executive Editor Chris Wright oversees editorial operations for Saturday Down South.
