BATON ROUGE — LSU All-America linebacker Bradie James is expected to be the first of a handful of Tigers selected when the NFL Draft starts on Saturday in New York.
The draft, which will be televised live on ESPN, starts at 11 a.m. CT on Saturday with the first three rounds. Rounds four through seven will be held starting at 10 a.m. on Sunday.
“I’m very excited that the draft is finally here,” James said on Friday morning. “It’s been a process. It’s been different and I’ve had to make a transition. It’s been a lot like recruiting, but your dealing with money now and anytime you deal with this type of money it’s business.
“One thing that I’ve had to do is get myself mentally ready for the business aspect of the game. I’ve done all that I can do and I’m just ready to get this part of the process over with.”
James, a First Team All-America for the Tigers in 2002, will be watch the draft with his family in his hometown of Monroe, La.
James capped his four-years at LSU with 418 career tackles, including a school-record 154 as a senior. James, who will graduate in May with a degree in criminology, also recorded 14 sacks and 32.5 tackles for losses while playing in 46 games with 34 starts.
In four years with the Tigers, James earned First Team All-Southeastern Conference honors at linebacker twice as well as being a Freshman All-SEC selection in 1999. James also earned MVP honors in the Peach Bowl in 1999 and was named the SBC Cotton Bowl Scholar-Athlete in 2002.
Perhaps James’ most significant honor came in 2002 when he was only one of six players in Division I-A awarded the National Scholar-Athlete Award from the National Football Foundation. The award carries an $18,000 post-graduate scholarship.
Other Tigers that have a shot at getting drafted over the weekend include junior running back LaBrandon Toefield, running back/return specialists Domanick Davis, safety Norman LeJeune, defensive lineman Kenderick Allen, wide receiver Jerel Myers and cornerback Demetrius Hookfin.
“I’m ready to see where I’m going to end up,” Toefield said. “I’ve heard any where from early rounds to the late rounds, depending on how the draft unfolds. I have had good workouts and I feel really good. It’s an exciting time and it’s tough sitting here today not knowing where you may be tomorrow.”
Toefield, who became the fifth Tiger since 1998 to declare early for the NFL Draft, rushed for 2,149 yards and 26 touchdowns in his three injury-plagued years at LSU. Toefield, a First Team Freshman All-American in 2000 and a First Team All-SEC pick in 2001, tied an SEC record with 19 rushing TDs in 2001. He was twice named SEC Player of the Week during his career.
Toefield will be in Atlanta for the draft.
“I’m nervous and excited all at the same time,” Davis said. “I’ve talked to several teams and I feel like I did a good job at the combine. Now I have to sit back and wait for the phone to ring on draft day. When that happens, it will be a good feeling.”
Davis, who capped his career as the most spectacular return specialist in school history, holds the LSU career records for kickoff return yards (2,168) and punt return yards (1,126) and he holds the SEC record for combined return yardage (3,294).
Davis, who ranks second in LSU history and third in SEC history with 5,743 all-purpose yards, earned Second Team All-SEC honors in 2002 as a return specialist and a running back. Davis, who rushed for 2,056 yards and 20 TDs in his career, led the Tigers with 931 yards and seven touchdowns on the ground as a senior.
Since Nick Saban took over as head coach of the Tigers, LSU has had eight players taken in the NFL, including five in 2002.