Scott, Black to return to LSU for senior season

BATON ROUGE, La. — LSU running back Charles Scott and offensive lineman Ciron Black will return to school for their senior seasons and putting off the NFL.

“The team really needs me and Ciron and the other seniors to be leaders on this team,” Scott said. “We’ve been to the mountain top with winning a national championship and then last year was a disappointment. We have to show the young guys what it takes.”

Scott ran for 1,174 yards, the fifth-best mark in school history and 18 touchdowns in 2008.

Black has been the starting left offensive tackle for the past three years. He has started 40 consecutive games for LSU.

“It’s really good for me to come back,” Black said. “I’m really close to graduating. I also have a lot more to do in college. I have to be more of a leader. Both of us have a lot we need to do. We want to be real leaders.”

Former LSU stars LaRon Landry and Glenn Dorsey elected to return for their senior seasons and ended up being top-five NFL draft picks.

“Historically, the guys who chose to come back all have had greater years,” LSU coach Les Miles said. “They come back with a purpose. We’re thrilled that Ciron and Charles are coming back. That tells me we’ll have great leaders. The guys who will be wearing the helmets for LSU have been in the trenches.”

The NFL advisory board gave Black a higher grade than Scott, but Black said he felt it was better for him to return to school for his final year.

“It was late first or early second round. It’s still much more of a gamble. You don’t know who’s coming out at that time when you get the grade and you don’t know what teams need,” he said.

Scott was not projected to go on the first day of the NFL draft and that, coupled with his academic status, helped him choose to return to the Tigers program.

“I received a third-round grade,” Scott said. “I just have to work on getting better at everything. I also found out that I’m 30 hours away from graduating. That was real big in my decision.”