Saturday Blitz
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SEC Football: Top 100 SEC players to watch in 2016

By Nicholas Ian Allen

Nov 7, 2015; Tuscaloosa, AL, USA; LSU Tigers running back Leonard Fournette (7) runs the ball during the fourth quarter against the Alabama Crimson Tide at Bryant-Denny Stadium. Alabama won 30-16. Mandatory Credit: Marvin Gentry-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 7, 2015; Tuscaloosa, AL, USA; LSU Tigers running back Leonard Fournette (7) runs the ball during the fourth quarter against the Alabama Crimson Tide at Bryant-Denny Stadium. Alabama won 30-16. Mandatory Credit: Marvin Gentry-USA TODAY Sports /
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Nov 28, 2015; Auburn, AL, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide wide receiver Calvin Ridley (3) reaches for a ball during the second quarter against the Auburn Tigers at Jordan Hare Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Shanna Lockwood-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 28, 2015; Auburn, AL, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide wide receiver Calvin Ridley (3) reaches for a ball during the second quarter against the Auburn Tigers at Jordan Hare Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Shanna Lockwood-USA TODAY Sports /

Calvin Ridley 2015 Season Statistics

  • Games Played: 15
  • Receptions: 89
  • Receiving Yardage: 1,045
  • Yards Per Catch: 11.7
  • Receiving Yards Per Game: 69.7
  • Receiving Touchdowns: 7
  • Notable: Broke Alabama single-season freshman record for receiving yardage.

No true freshman SEC football player made a bigger impact in 2015 than Alabama wide receiver Calvin Ridley, who emerged as the big-play compliment to Heisman Trophy running back Derrick Henry for the national champion Crimson Tide.

Ridley led the SEC with 89 receptions and ranked No. 2 in the league with 1,045 receiving yards – both of which set Alabama receiving records previously held by Amari Cooper. With Henry leaving early for the NFL, and Alabama losing nearly 90 percent of its rushing production from the 2015 roster, Ridley could be in line to challenge Cooper’s overall school receiving records in 2016.

Often used on short and intermediate routes (he averaged just 11.7 yards per catch, which ranked No. 34 in the SEC), Ridley also proved more than capable of stretching defenses as the season wore on. He posted six catches of 46 yards or longer, and scored five of his seven touchdowns on gains of 30 yards or longer – including an 81-yarder against Arkansas, a 60-yarder against Mississippi State and a 50-yarder against Michigan State in the Cotton Bowl.

Next: Jalen Hurd

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