Ex-LSU Quarterback Transfers To Jax State

Troubled ex-LSU quarterback Ryan Perrilloux may have found a place where he can get the playing time he craves.

Perrilloux has transferred to Jacksonville State, where he will have the inside track for the starting quarterback job next season.

Perrilloux was dismissed from LSU earlier this month after repeated off-the-field problems. The Gamecocks do not have a scholarship quarterback on their roster and since Perrilloux is transferring to a Football Championship Subdivision team, he won’t have to sit out next season.

He has two years of eligibility remaining.

“Basically, I just see this as a second opportunity to be successful,” Perrilloux told The Birmingham News.

Jacksonville State coach Jack Crowe spoke to the family of Perrilloux earlier this month about the possibility of transferring to the school. Crowe also spoke with LSU coach Les Miles, who explained Perrilloux’s situation to Crowe.

“Les was very kind to spend quite a bit of time explaining the situation to me,” Crowe told The Associated Press. “He’s very optimistic about him being a successful player and a successful student-athlete.”

Crowe said Miles felt Perrilloux arrived at LSU with expectations to play as a freshman, but that opportunity diminished. Perrilloux instead served as a backup to JaMarcus Russell and Matt Flynn during his time with the Tigers.

He’ll have a clear shot at the Jacksonville State starting job, though. The Gamecocks’ 2007 starter, Cedric Johnson, was kicked off the team after the season for violating team rules. Two other quarterbacks left the team and another graduated.

That leaves two signees, one of whom Crowe planned to grayshirt and have enroll after the 2008 season.

“We’ve signed a couple of good young players,” he said. “This would be a natural choice for somebody that may want to move into an opportunity at quarterback.”

Once one of the nation’s top quarterback prospects, Perrilloux was suspended three times over the past year.

He was on the fringe of a counterfeiting investigation and was caught trying to enter a Baton Rouge casino with false identification. He also was involved in a nightclub fight in November. That caused him to miss a game at Alabama, though he was cleared of wrongdoing.

Perrilloux said he visited only two schools during his search for a place to transfer — Jacksonville State and Alabama A&M.

“I am excited that it’s over and I can begin to move forward,” Perrilloux told The Birmingham News.

Credit: ESPN