Ridgeway will partake in all DL drills on Sunday. He measured in with a 6-3-even height, a 303-pound weight, 33-inch arms and 9 3/8" hands. Here is a complete transcript of Ridgeway's session with the media during which he discusses the Longhorns, his NFL goals, his decision-making process in foregoing his senior season and much more.
On how he projects at NFL level position-wise
"I played all the positions from a zero all the way to a five-tech, I can see myself fitting anywhere.
Tough Longhorns season in 2015
"Sometimes things don't go the way you always want them to. Thats one of the things that Coach Strong always taught us is to make sure that when things aren't going well you've got to keep fighting. That's what he always preached to us."
Any advice from Texas NFL alumni
"Not this event - this isn't something you really prepare for, this is something you go into to understand and go through it - everybody does. I've talked to players about different things in the NFL, but not this particular event. This is simple. This is not football. This is show yourself. Show who you are."
Looking forward to a specific event at combine?
"Honestly, I'm ready for each and every one of them, just go out and show what I can do."
Now that you're going pro you can be honest, when did you decide you were leaving
"I didn't know until we had that month-long break where everybody else was playing and I was sitting at home. To sit there and talk to my family about if I was going to leave or if I wasn't. I was able to get my grade back from the NFL committee and go through that."
What was the grade
"Second-round grade."
Why did you leave
"A lot of different reasons. I talked to former teammates that are in the NFL right now, seeing how I would fit in the league and my how my abilities would fit there. Talking to my family, asking 'is this the best thing for me?' Just seeing if I'd make a decision I would regret and going back to school, I don't ever want to regret something. You can't blame anyone else for a decision you make. So, it came down to me making the decision I could live with.
Did you talk to Cedric Reed about his opinion?
"Yeah."
Are you ready for the NFL now?
"Yeah."
What do you need to work on
"My hands, I have times where I didn't always use my hands like I should've."
Still in contact with Malcom Brown?
"I talk to him sometimes."
Biggest thing that Strong's done to change the program at Texas
"He's changed the environment - the sense of how everybody thinks around there, how we wants people to think. How you should act, whether you're losing or winning, just how he approaches different things."
Compare yourself to an NFL defensive lineman
"Gerald McCoy."
If Charlie is trying to change the program, is it working?
"I see a sense that everybody wants to win. Everyone is buying in to what he's brought to the table and they want to succeed."
Was it not like that before?
"It's just more now. They're all in. They're ready."
Is there a sense of needing to get more people drafted after these bad years
"That's going to happen. This is the University of Texas! I have complete faith that in the next few years there will be plenty of people. There will not be one person at the combine again."
Has the defense been left in good hands after your departure
"No doubt. Paul Boyette, Poona Ford, Chris Nelson on the inside? Yes, it's been left in good hands. That batch of recruits coming in? You got Naason Hughes, the defensive ends, Bryce Cottrell, I left it in very good hands."
How hard will it be for a freshmen to contribute right off at the backup three-technique
"I promise you one thing, they'd rather be playing than be on the sideline. The coaches want to make sure they're prepared. The coaches are not going to put someone on the field who is not ready. So, even if that means they're only going one guy deep, they're not going to put somebody in who's not ready. If they're out there, it means they're ready."
Soft-spoken guy but monster on the field
"You always have to have a switch. You can't be the same person you are off the field on the field. It's an aggressive game - you gotta play differently."
Texas program and Charlie angry that he's the only one at the combine?
"I don't know. I don't know what he thinks about it. Obviously it's not good when you only have one person representing the University of Texas, as big of a program as it is. You should never have one person."
Planning on doing all drills
"Yeah, I'm planning on doing everything."
Where are you training?
"EXOS out in LA"
Grow up with a favorite NFL team?
"No I didn't."
Biggest strengths
"Speed, power"
Players you looked up to as a kid
"I remember the game where Texas played Nebraska - all I could see was Suh tearing up the Texas offensive line. That's one of the players I've always looked up to. I've watched that game numerous times."
What position do teams see you at
"Man, everything. I played everything in college. 3-4, 4-3, really didn't matter - nose, tackle, 3-4 end."
One you feel most comfortable in?
"Doesn't matter to me."
High school coach said he was as good a basketball player as a football player back then
"Those were the old days, I don't know about that."
Watched any of Malcom's games with Patriots?
"Yeah, we watch him - at Texas, you always look at them, always watching former players in the NFL.
How did he do?
"Good! When you're getting double-teamed, and using up somebody else, you're freeing up other people, I felt like he did his job out there."
Toughest Texas OL to practice against
"My favorite person to go against, because I am competitive, is Kent Perkins. He's the best person on the O-Line. No doubt. No doubt."
What about Vahe and Williams - how do they compare to Big12 OL you've faced
"Physical-wise, they're as physical as any other people in the conference, it's not about being physical though, it's about learning and being able to function within the o-line, and doing your job. Everybody coming in as a freshmen they have to learn and just keep going - which they're going to do - they're great players. They're already good, they're going to become great."
