QB JACKSON HEADS FOR NFL DRAFT

Lamar Jackson will leave Louisville to enter the NFL draft, one season after becoming the youngest Heisman Trophy winner.

The Cardinals’ junior quarterback tweeted Friday that he talked with his family before announcing the decision, which was confirmed by Louisville football team spokesman Rocco Gasparro.

The 6-foot-3, 212-pound Jackson’s decision was somewhat expected after compiling statistics better in some areas than his Heisman-winning numbers as a sophomore. He finished third in this season’s Heisman voting.

USC’s Jones declares.

Southern California tailback Ronald Jones II will skip his senior season to enter the draft.

The speedy, durable Jones was an excellent heir to the Trojans’ Tailback U. tradition, finishing fifth in school history with 3,619 yards rushing while averaging 6.1 yards per carry. He was an all-Pac-12 firstteam selection in 2017.

Auburn QB returning.

Auburn quarterback Jarrett Stidham will return for his junior season after leading the Tigers to the SEC’s West Division title. Even with more teams having a strong case to be included in the national title conversation this season, College Football Playoff director Bill Hancock doesn’t see the current format expanding beyond four teams anytime soon.

Hancock addressed the topic of playoff expansion in a meeting in Atlanta, site of the College Football Playoff championship game between Alabama and Georgia on Monday night.

“It would take a unanimous vote from all the conferences for that kind of movement to start,” Hancock said. “Right now, that’s not in the cards.”

FCS champ eyes repeat.

The way James Madison coach Mike Houston sees it, North Dakota State’s FCS dominance isn’t quite over, even though his Dukes ended the Bison’s five-year title run in the semifinals last season.

Houston’s team is a win from an undefeated season as the defending champion. The final opponent in the pursuit of a second straight crown: North Dakota State on Saturday in the FCS championship game. — The Associated Press