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Hall hopes he’ll get a shot at pros after fast 40 time - Columbus Dispatch
Hall hopes he’ll get a shot at pros after fast 40 time
Sixteen OSU seniors try to impress scouts
Thursday, March 10, 2005
Ken Gordon
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
This is not what Maurice Hall thought he would have to do to make it in the NFL.
Four years ago, the Brookhaven running back was a Parade All-American, a high school star who spurned a slew of big-name programs to sign with his hometown Ohio State Buckeyes.
Surely, 1,000-yard seasons would follow, and the inevitable first-day — maybe even firstround — call on draft day.
But things happen, as they always do. Adjustment to a new system, balky knees, and
Maurice Hall some guy named Clarett, to name just a few.
Hall did not gain 1,000 yards in his career, finishing with 974 and six touchdowns. He contributed in other ways, becoming OSU’s all-time leading kickoff returner, but that’s not enough for NFL scouts to come knocking.
What gets teams’ attention is speed. And so there Hall was yesterday, lining up for a very important 40-yard dash in front of about 20 scouts at OSU’s pro day in the Woody Hayes practice facility.
Hall sprinted, stopwatches clicked. Eyebrows raised.
Every team kept its own time and many did not care to share, but the consensus range was between 4.45 and 4.49 seconds.
"I feel like I helped myself today," Hall said. "Hopefully, they saw I can play."
It was that kind of day at OSU, a day for hard-luck players such as Hall, or fellow running back Lydell Ross, or receiver Bam Childress.
Star power was lacking. The three Buckeyes invited to the NFL combine were there — defensive end Simon Fraser, cornerback Dustin Fox and kicker Mike Nugent — but the more poignant stories came from among the other 13 seniors.
"Some guys (who) were in there, they wanted to prove themselves since they didn’t play that much," said Childress, a former Ohio Mr. Football who totaled 34 career catches.
Childress performed well, running in the 4.5 range, with a 38-inch vertical leap and 19 repetitions of 225 pounds on the bench press — impressive for a small player (5 feet 9, 180 pounds).
Ross left disappointed. He blamed poor starts for his 40 times, reportedly between 4.69 and 4.73. He vowed to run again before the April 23-24 draft.
He had a more productive career than Hall but still was considered an underachiever. Poised for a big season after an injury-hindered 2003, Ross had problems with fumbling and a team suspension after a strip-club incident. He ended with 475 yards and four TDs.
"Being realistic, the numbers didn’t come out like I wanted them to this season," Ross said. "I’m hearing second day (of the draft), hopefully, and just move on from there."
Most draft projections have Ross on the bubble, possibly seventh round but possibly a free agent. Hall was lower in the ratings, at least until yesterday.
He says his knees are sound after surgery on both following the 2003 season. He also might benefit from the reputation of OSU as a running-back school, one scout said.
But it’s speed that opens eyes, the type of speed Hall displayed yesterday. Maybe after years of inching along, he’s putting on a late burst.
"(Four years ago), I definitely felt like I would be in a different position (now)," Hall said. "But no matter what happens, you still have to find a way to get there. Now it’s up to the NFL coaches (to) see what they need, and hopefully I’m one of them."
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Workouts for scouts please OSU juniors - Columbus Dispatch
Workouts for scouts please OSU juniors
Thursday, March 10, 2005
Tim May
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
There was a buzz generated yesterday during the pro-day workouts at Ohio State, but it had more to do with next year’s NFL draft than the one this April.
Underclassmen are allowed to run 40-yard dashes for the pro scouts. Linebackers A.J. Hawk and Bobby Carpenter ran 4.50 and 4.53 seconds, then center Nick Mangold ran 4.94, turning thoughts to next year.
That’s because only about 20 NFL folks — no head coaches and just a handful of assistants — showed up to look at what would have to be labeled a modest crop of drafteligible Buckeyes. Next year’s pro day likely will be much different, more like last year when more than 60 showed before drafting 14 Buckeyes.
"There’s no question that next year this place will be packed," said former Ohio State coach John Cooper, now a scout for the Cincinnati Bengals.
Creating that kind of buzz was the idea, Carpenter said.
"That’s what we’re trying to do, get your name out there with a fast time so guys are looking at you next year, seeing your game tape and they can associate how fast you can run with what you can do," Carpenter said. "Hopefully that will help your draft status."
Said Hawk, Ohio State’s leading tackler last season and an All-American: "Bobby and I both came into today hoping to break 4.6. Then both of us did, so we’re happy. And Nick running under 5.0, that’s great for an offensive lineman."
Hawk also said "for the underclassmen, it was less pressure. That’s because we knew if we came out and had a bad day, we could always come back next year and change that. I’m just hoping I can carry my time over to next year."
Expect more NFL personnel to watch that day.
"We’re going to have a big senior class, I’m sure that’s going to have something to do with it, and we’re going to have a good year on the field, the whole team, so I think that will help draw the coaches here," Hawk said. "There’s a lot of big, strong, fast guys here, and a lot of the guys will test well on a day like this.
"I think it will be a fun day next year, but we’ve got a lot of work before then."
Future is now
For some members of Ohio State’s outgoing class, yesterday’s workout might have determined whether they will play in the pros. Two of those were linebacker Thomas Matthews and receiver John Hollins, both of whom played mostly on special teams.
Both ran the 40 in 4.5 seconds, which for Matthews was pleasing but for Hollins slightly disappointing. But Hollins might have made up for it by benchpressing 225 pounds 21 times and popping a 37½-inch vertical leap. Matthews leapt 34 inches.
Their goals, meanwhile, are the same.
"I just want a chance to get into somebody’s camp and show my athletic ability," Matthews said. "I want to go out there and make somebody’s special teams, and see if I can grow from there and move into maybe a strong safety position or outside linebacker, wherever they would like to use me."
Time better be on your side if you hope to play in NFL - Columbus Dispatch
Time better be on your side if you hope to play in NFL
Thursday, March 10, 2005
ROB OLLER
After nearly 14 years of playing football, Bam Childress’ career came down to 20 minutes of jumping through hoops. Jump fast enough and he might end up in the NFL. Bound too slowly and the Ohio State receiver might be training dogs to hop through those hoops. It’s a thin line. Absurdly thin. If Childress doesn’t make it in professional football, he could end up breeding and training pit bull terriers.
"Breed and sell puppies," he said. "You can make $2,500 to $3,000, but it’s more that I just love them."
But going to the dogs is Plan B. Going across the middle remains Plan A.
Childress wants to play football for a living, which is what made yesterday’s workout at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center so important.
"A lot of people go off of the numbers. They go off the workout sheet. (They ask) ‘What did they do?’ " he said. "Every coach I talk to, every 40 I run. Every bench press . . . is a job interview."
A football player spends a thousand practices and a hundred games proving his worth, only to have his fate decided by how fast he can run 40 yards and how high he can jump.
A boy becomes a young man, who then becomes an adult, all while wearing shoulder pads and cleats. He sweats, abuses his body, sacrifices on the field. Then, in the time it takes the OSU band to spell out O-H-I-O, he can slip up in front of NFL scouts and find himself slopping out Alpo the rest of his life.
It is like the unknown Olympic athlete who trains four years for a single make-or-break moment — except a lot more money is on the line.
"You get jitters," said Childress, who is realistic enough to know his draft prospects are not great. "Sixth or seventh round, or as a free agent," he said.
That’s likely the best-case scenario, and only if he aced his draft workout. There is a lot to gain from these workouts, but even more to lose, especially for the ’tweener player whose career was limited to second-string status. There are different rules for the top dog and those who might end up breeding them.
Some NFL team will draft Ohio State defensive end Simon Fraser regardless of whether he lifts 225 pounds 20 times or 25. The margin of error is much smaller for guys such as Childress and running back Maurice Hall, whose career was hurt by knee problems.
Indications were that Childress did well enough to impress the scouts. His time in the 40 averaged 4.51 seconds and his 38-inch vertical leap and 225-pound bench press (performed 18 times) probably earned him an invitation to an NFL training camp, if not a spot in the draft.
But had he run a split-second slower, he might have slipped into a category from which there is no escape. Scouts rank potential free agents two ways: high free agent and free agent. The rest are rejects.
What are a reject’s options?
"His options are to graduate," said former OSU coach John Cooper, who now scouts for the Cincinnati Bengals. "That’s why you get your degree."
Childress’ other backup plan is to sell pharmaceuticals. Hall wants to become a TV sports analyst if the NFL doesn’t want him.
"It comes down to doing well (today). If you do well you’ll be all right," said Hall, who ran an impressive 4.45 seconds in the 40.
If not — bow-wow.
"I could get upset about it," said Childress, referring to the NFL’s rationale of judging a player by the number of seconds he runs instead of the number of years he’s performed. "But we can control only what we can control."
Still, it still seems unfair to punish a player for having one bad day. Maybe he had a poor night’s sleep. Or lost his wallet on the way to the workout. Or twisted his ankle getting out of the car.
"It’s hard, but I believe things happen for a reason," Childress said. "So I really can’t blame it on, ‘I had eggs for breakfast this morning.’ "
Gotta like that positive outlook. Here’s hoping Bam’s NFL future is sunny side up.
Rob Oller is a sports writer for The Dispatch
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And HabaneroBuck already got this article from the DDN posted, but here's the link:
Hawk steals show at Pro Day - Dayton Daily News
