Ten Hoosiers Participate at Pro Day

By: Sam Beishuizen | Twitter
IUHoosiers.com

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - The 10 Hoosiers who participated in Indiana's pro day Friday are used to playing in front of crowds. Every game snap they took in their respective careers was taken with thousands looking on.

But the intensity of those crowds could be matched and in some cases even overshadowed by the watchful eyes of scouts and personnel representing all 32 NFL teams who gathered at Mellencamp Pavilion to watch Indiana's Pro Day Friday.

Every move matters when lucrative contracts and NFL roster spots are on the line.

"I feel like it's tougher to play in front of the scouts," running back Jordan Howard said. "You have to make one big impression on them. It's not like they're recruiting you. You have to sell yourself to them."

Howard was joined by fellow NFL hopefuls Andre Booker, Michael Cooper, Darius Latham, Adarius Rayner, Jake Reed, Zack Shaw, Jason Spriggs, Nate Sudfeld and Erich Toth in participating in athleticism tests, position drills and other individual workouts.

Howard, Latham, Spriggs and Sudfeld all also participated in the NFL Scouting Combine last month. And although they are the clear frontrunners for earning NFL roster spots, head coach Kevin Wilson isn't shorting any of the players' chances for making it in the professional ranks.

"I think the majority of those guys have a skillset and potential opportunity to be in camps and potentially make it," Wilson said.

The Hoosiers participated in variety of training in front of the scouts on hand ranging from the common combine drills like the vertical jump and bench press to individual workouts.

Sudfeld ended the day with about 30 minutes' worth of throwing to Booker, Howard and former Hoosiers Tandon Toss and Shane Wynn. He improved his vertical from the NFL combine to 29.5 inches and clocked in with an unofficial 7.24 second 3-cone drill and a 4.57 second agility drill.

By now, Sudfeld said he's talked with just about every NFL team. Even so, he's mostly clueless as to where and when he might be drafted.

"You have no clue really," Sudfeld said. "They play it so close to the vest. The one that you talk to a bunch probably doesn't really like you, and one team you haven't talked to once, I've seen a lot of stories where they end up drafting the guy."

Howard, one of Sudfeld's targets in the passing drills, said he's feeling "100 percent" after missing four games last season with a knee injury. He finished his 40-yard dash in 4.5 seconds after not running it at the NFL Combine.

With family on hand from all across the country to watch him, Howard said he's been leaning on running backs coach Deland McCullough—a former NFL player in his own right—for advice through the process.

Howard's best guess is that he could go from anywhere between the second and fourth rounds and said he's scheduled workouts with the Green Bay Packers and New Orleans Saints.

"With the draft you never know what's going to happen," Howard said. "It's so unpredictable. I'm just being patient and waiting for a team to draft me. It only takes one team to like me, so I'm just going to wait it out and be patient."

Spriggs, who many NFL draft projections have as a late first-round pick, had one of the more impressive physical feats of the day with a 35-inch vertical jump. Like Sudfeld and Howard, Spriggs spent additional time working with scouts one-on-one after the more conventional tests.

Though he's been open to change, Spriggs said he still projects to be a left tackle at the next level. He'll be visiting with the Denver Broncos and New Orleans Saints soon, among others, and said he's been enjoying the process of turning professional.

Unlike some players, Spriggs has actually stayed in Bloomington to do his training for the NFL Draft. He's still attending class to finish his degree and said workouts like Indiana's Pro Day are more fun than they are work.

"It's basically stress-free," Spriggs said. "You're talking to these coaches and it's a more relaxed atmosphere than the (NFL) Combine for sure."

Wilson, no stranger to sending players to the NFL, said there are two main reasons why players won't make it in the league that he's made clear to IU's NFL hopefuls. He's told them players who try and fail to turn professional are either not talented enough or not mature enough to handle being a professional athlete.

Whether or not the 10 players who worked out in front of scouts Friday afternoon make it remains to be seen. But after one of the more complex tryouts they'll go through, players who addressed the media all sounded fairly pleased and confident.

"You've got to take it as a job interview," Spriggs said. "Because that's what it is."

That's fast: Booker paced the way in the 40-yard dash, clocking at at 4.4 seconds. Howard wasn't far behind him at 4.5.

Personal bench records: Cooper (21 reps), Reed (24 reps) and Shaw (28 reps) all set personal-bests on the 225-pound bench press.

Leaping high: Spriggs' 35-inch vertical was perhaps the standout measurement of the day, but Shaw's 33-inch vertical wasn't far behind.

Players Mentioned

Andre Booker

Michael Cooper

Jordan Howard

Darius Latham

Adarius Rayner

Jake Reed

Zack Shaw

Jason Spriggs

Nate Sudfeld

Erich Toth

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