Penn State’s Carter Puts Name In Nfl Draft Hat And Leaves School

With Penn State running back Ki-Jana Carter among the latest additions, the number of football underclassmen deciding to turn pro rather than finish college reached 17 Monday.

Carter topped a list of five players who declared themselves eligible for the NFL draft, two days before the Jan. 11 deadline.

The others are tailback Curtis Johnson and defensive tackle Greg Black of North Carolina, cornerback Ty Law of Michigan and Notre Dame defensive back Bobby Taylor.

Carter, the Heisman Trophy runner-up this season, said he was giving up his last year of eligibility so he could provide his family with financial security.

Carter helped No. 2 Penn State (12-0) to its first Big Ten title and a Rose Bowl victory this season. He ran for 1,539 yards and 23 touchdowns, and his 7.8-yard average was best among the nation’s top50 rushers. He scored three touchdowns in the Rose Bowl.

Johnson was the Tar Heels’ secondleading rusher in 1994, gaining 721 yards and scoring seven touchdowns. Black, 6-foot-5 and 288 pounds, started every game on the defensive line for the Tar Heels. He had 21 tackles and 16 assists.

Law, a junior, said money was the big reason he decided not to return to Michigan. He said he made the decision after long talks with Raymond Law, his grandfather and guardian.

Taylor, a junior, was a third-team AllAmerican. He had 46 tackles, one sack and one interception while starting all 11 regular-season games.

Wide receiver Keyshawn Johnson, who caught 66 passes for 1,362 yards and nine touchdowns for Southern Cal during the 1994 season, announced he will return to school next year.

Quarterbacks coach Ron Hudson, an original member of head coach John Cooper’s staff at Ohio State, has been fired, according to the Columbus Dispatch in Columbus, Ohio.

Seven new assistant coaches have joined the Navy football program, Navy coach Charlie Weatherbie said. The coaches are Dick Bumpas, defensive coordinator and defensive line coach; Brent Guy, linebackers coach; Gary Patterson, safeties; Gene McKeehan, centers and guards; Scott Criner, tight ends and offensive tackles; and Scott Runyan, wide receivers. The new offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach is Paul Johnson.