Tag: college pro day

Pittsburgh RB Israel Abanikanda lights it up at the Panthers’ pro day

Pittsburgh RB Israel Abanikanda lights it up at the Panthers’ pro day in front of all 32 NFL teams

This year’s class of running backs has a sizeable cluster in the range between the second through fourth rounds. It’s a talented group but also one that is difficult to sort out.

Thanks to a superb athletic display at his pro day on Wednesday, Pittsburgh’s Israel Abanikanda helped move himself closer to the top of that RB cluster. Abanikanda put on quite a show for the 32 NFL teams in attendance. Scouts on the scene clocked the 5-foot-11, 218-pound runner with a sub-4.4 40-yard dash, a 41.5″ vertical and a broad jump of nearly 11 feet.

Abanikanda showed during his on-field time at Pitt that he can plant and go out of a cut extremely well, and he’s capable of lowering his pads and dishing out as much punishment as he takes.

2023 NFL draft big board: Running backs

Abanikanda wasn’t the only Panthers prospect to show out at the pro day. The vertical jumps from three different Pitt players would have been the best at their positions at the 2023 NFL Scouting Combine — Abanikanda at RB, linebacker SirVocea Dennis and wideout Jared Wayne all topping 41 inches.

Emmanuel Forbes adds some weight for Mississippi State pro day

Potential first-round CB Emmanuel Forbes adds some weight for Mississippi State pro day

Mississippi State cornerback Emmanuel Forbes is a player with a first-round body of game film but not necessarily the physical body to match. Forbes weighed just 166 pounds at the NFL Scouting Combine, a paltry mass on his lanky 6-foot-1 frame.

At the Bulldogs’ pro day on Tuesday, Forbes showed he could add a little meat to his bones. He weighed in at 170 pounds. Every little bit helps a player like Forbes.

All 32 NFL teams were in attendance in Starkville. Forbes opted not to run, standing on his combine time of 4.35 in the 40-yard dash with an elite 1.48 10-yard split. He acknowledged having top-30 visits upcoming with several NFL teams,

Forbes is the all-time leader in pick-sixes at the NCAA level with six, including three last season.

The Panthers send a massive contingent to Kentucky’s pro day

The Panthers send a massive contingent to Kentucky’s pro day to check out QB Will Levis

The Carolina Panthers are once again sending a massive presence to check out a potential No. 1 overall pick at his pro day. This time around, Panthers owner David Tepper and many other significant decision-makers in the organization are focused on Kentucky quarterback Will Levis.

Per Albert Breer, the Panthers traveling road show headed to Lexington in advance of Friday’s pro day. They dined with Levis the night before the Wildcats’ workout.

It’s the same treatment the Panthers contingent gave to Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud earlier this week.

Alabama’s pro day was sandwiched in between, featuring (among many others) QB Bryce Young. The full Panthers throng did also make the short trip to Tuscaloosa and met with Young as well.

Kicker Jake Moody puts his best foot forward at Michigan’s pro day

Moody showed off draft-worthy accuracy and leg strength at Michigan’s pro day

It’s not often that a kicker is a featured performer at a major college pro day. Not every kicker is Michigan’s Jake Moody.

The Wolverines kicker stole the show at the team’s indoor training facility on Friday morning. Moody nailed 12 of his 13 official attempts on the day, including a successful 63-yarder. He missed from 57.

Moody is the rare kicker who could be drafted before the final round. He was the Lou Groza Award winner in 2021 when he made 23-of-25 attempts with a long field goal of 52 yards. In 2022, Moody connected on 29 of his 35 attempts.

He made just 3-of-7 from beyond 50 yards last fall, but his 59-yarder that closed out his final game at Michigan was the longest successful attempt of any kicker in this draft class. Moody did not miss on 148 career extra points.

The Big 12 Conference will have one giant pro day in 2024

The Big 12 will have one giant pro day in 2024 instead of each school hosting its own

The collegiate pro day circuit will look a little different in 2024. Instead of each school in the Big 12 Conference holding individual pro days on their campuses, the member schools will hold one big, unified pro day next year.

Per Dennis Dobbs of CBS Sports, the Big 12 partnered with the NFL for the unique new concept. In effect, the conference is holding an event similar to the NFL Scouting Combine workouts for its 14 schools–which includes Texas and Oklahoma in their final season in the league in 2023.

From Dobbs’ report:

The Big 12 will be partnering with the NFL to hold its own conference-wide pro day next year ahead of the 2024 NFL Draft, CBS Sports has learned. The event will be held at the Dallas Cowboys training facility in Frisco, Texas.

The Big 12 pro day is believed to be the first of its kind: a comprehensive event where NFL evaluators can observe the top players from a major-college conference in a single location. That is the Ford Center, a 510,000 square foot indoor athletic facility within the Cowboys’ complex known as The Star in Frisco.

The event will be closed to the public but will air on the NFL Network.

Oregon pro day: 31 teams check out the Ducks prospects

Oregon pro day: 31 teams check out the Ducks prospects including CB Christian Gonzalez and WR Chase Cota

The Oregon Ducks held their pro day for 12 aspiring NFL draft prospects on Tuesday. Every NFL team was represented at the Ducks’ indoor training facility except the Los Angeles Rams. Most teams had multiple representatives on hand.

The headliner for the Ducks draft class is CB Christian Gonzalez, but he opted to stand pat on his outstanding NFL Scouting Combine workout numbers. Gonzalez, a potential top-10 overall pick and strong contender to be the first defensive back selected in April’s draft, did participate in position drills. He looked good, as expected,

The other top Oregon prospect, linebacker Noah Sewell, also opted not to participate in the athletic testing outside of agility drills. Sewell did position drill work as well. The 250-pound backer was cheered on by older brother Penei, the Pro Bowl right tackle for the Detroit Lions. The younger Sewell had a rough workout in Indianapolis but elected not to try and run more at the pro day, which indicates the sluggish combine performance wasn’t a fluke. Sewell currently projects as a middle-round prospect for a team that doesn’t mind heavy, slower LBs.

Wideout Chase Cota didn’t get a combine invite, but he had himself an impressive workout. Catching passes from 2024 draft prospect Bo Nix, Cota certainly helped himself according to Ducks beat writer Jared Mack,

Cota, who measured in at 6-foot-4, put up staggering numbers for his size with a 37.5 inch vertical jump, 10-foot-6 broad jump, and a 4.50 40-yard dash. With those numbers, Cota would have ranked 24th in 40 times, 14th in vertical jump, and 20th in broad jump.

Cota, a transfer from UCLA, caught 36 passes for 497 yards and three TDs in 2022, missing three games with an injury in his one season at Oregon. He is the son of former NFL safety Chad Cota.

The other Ducks who worked out:

OL Malaesala Aumavae-Laulu

P Adam Barry

OL T.J. Bass

LS Karsten Battles

OL Alex Forsyth

LB D.J. Johnson

DT Jordon Riley

OL Ryan Walk

CB Bennett Williams

South Carolina Gamecocks pro day: Cam Smith, Zacch Pickens bulk up

Five Longhorns who need a solid showing at Texas’ pro day

Texas’ Pro Day is scheduled for March 11 and these are the five players it could benefit most.

The Longhorns pro day for the 2021 NFL draft is scheduled for March 11 and all eight of Texas’ draft prospects are slated to participate. Continue reading “Five Longhorns who need a solid showing at Texas’ pro day”

NFL hopefuls will have a different combine experience

On Monday, the NFL informed teams that the 2021 NFL scouting combine will take place remotely on college campuses.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the NFL won’t be able to pull off the typical pre-draft process. Continue reading “NFL hopefuls will have a different combine experience”