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I already said earlier this week that Illinois running back Rashard Mendenhall would be skipping out on his senior season to enter the NFL draft, and now Rashard has gone and done something I haven't been able to do in 20 years or so.

He made me look smart.

Illinois junior running back Rashard Mendenhall will enter the NFL draft, a source close to him said Saturday.

Mendenhall, the Big Ten Player of the Year, made his final case as a pro prospect in the Rose Bowl, where he gained 155 yards rushing and added 59 receiving yards in the Fighting Illini's loss to Southern California.

Rashard's mother, Sibyl, says there's a press conference on Thursday at her son's old high school, Niles West.

While Mendenhall's absence is going to be a tough void to fill in Illinois' offense next season, Ron Zook actually sees his early departure as a good thing for the program.

Zook said he not only has no problem with [Rashard's departure], but also is looking forward to having more Illini leave Champaign early. Because that will mean Illinois is enjoying success as a team.

''We're going to get to a point in the program where we're going to have that issue. That's what you want. We have some other guys on this team that are going to have the opportunity possibly to do that.''

I have a feeling Ron may not feel the same way next season when he doesn't have Rashard around to bail Juice Williams out.