(Photo: Hailey Rogalski/WCSN)
The early spring Tempe morning of Mar. 13 was met with the palpable excitement of a life-changing opportunity for a select few former Arizona State football players. Over 20 combined NFL and CFL scouts descended upon the Ed and Nadine Carson Student-Athlete Center and the nearby Verde Dickey Dome to evaluate the strengths, weaknesses and talents of some NFL Draft prospects.
The former Sun Devils did body measurements — recording each player’s height, weight, wingspan and hand size — bench press and vertical jump in the Student-Athlete Center. The large party of players, scouts, media, agents and supporting family members then traveled across the street to the indoor practice facility in the dome for speed and agility testing — 40-yard dash, shuttle drill and L-cone drill — along with various position drills. Here are the moments that stood out.
Standout Moments
Bench Press: Offensive lineman Joey Ramos set the tone early in the weightlifting session, setting the day’s highest mark on bench press with 24 reps. Fellow offensive lineman Aaron Frost posted 22 reps, the second-highest in the group. Linebacker Travion Brown completed an impressive 21 reps, which would have tied him for first at the NFL combine among linebackers.
40-yard-dash: Safety Chris Edmonds didn’t have the best gym showing, only benching 9 reps with a 32-inch vertical, but he made up for it on his field speed and agility measurements. Edmonds paced the field posting the fastest unofficial 40-yard-dash time of the day at 4.42 seconds. That time would have been tied for second overall amongst all safeties at the NFL Combine. Cornerback Dee Ford and wide receiver Gio Sanders both unofficially ran in the low 4.5-second range. Dashaun Mallory, the lone defensive lineman at Pro Day, also impressed by running an unofficial 5-second flat 40.
Vertical: As the only wide receiver at ASU’s Pro Day, Gio Sanders garnered significant attention and made a strong impression with his vertical, finishing at 34 ½ inches — the best showing of the day in that category. Former walk-on safety Alphonso Taylor and Ford both reached 33 inches, while Edmonds and cornerback Ro Torrence recorded 32 ½-inch verticals.
Defensive Back Drills: Taylor stood out from the group in the various defensive back drills. He was consistently quick in and out of his breaks with very little wasted steps and movement. He flashed fluid hips and violent turns that can translate at the next level. Taylor also showed solid hands securing nearly every catch on first contact rarely if ever bobbling the ball.
Receiver Drills: Sanders struggled to get back out of breaks on comeback routes returning back to the football but looked quick and aggressive on movements at the top of longer vertical routes getting downfield. Sanders flashed impressive ball-tracking ability, locating and following multiple over-the-shoulder catches.
Tight end Messiah Swinson lacked speed through his routes, but drew attention from the scouts in attendance after hauling in a low pass one handed with his left hand. Former ASU quarterback Brady White, who played for the Sun Devils in 2016, was throwing for at ASU’s Pro Day.
Defensive Lineman Drills: Mallory had a good showing in bag drills, displaying extremely violent hands. The sound of his hands obliterating bags on his way through the maze reverberated throughout the Dome.
What Was Said
What is the mental preparation for this event?
Sanders: “You really can’t simulate anything like this, an environment where it’s dead quiet, when you have to go, it’s really everybody’s eyes on you… It’s hard, honestly, not to think about it as it gets closer and closer, but definitely something you get prepared for. (It’s) almost like a game, you can’t simulate a game nobody can practice for.”
Mallory: “I understand that people are watching me a lot up close, and money is involved. I understand that. But at the same time, I’ve been doing these drills since I was 13. So for the mental aspect, I was just trying to tell myself this is art, the more I can sit there and sharpen myself, hone in on little details, it’ll be beautiful by the time I come out of here as long as I keep my mind clear.”
Brown: “Have fun with it. I think honestly, at some point after the (40-yard dash), I was like,‘I only get to do this once. Why not have fun with it?’ And I just went in with that mentality, obviously go hard and do what I’m training to do, but also just have fun with it, man. You’re only going to be in front of 32 scouts one time besides the combine. This is my first time ever being in front of this many scouts, and I just went in with the mentality of having fun.”
Where do you think you made the strongest impression?
Mallory: “Honestly, all the way around. It’s very pretty to sit here and foreshadow what I think that I’ll do, but the proof is in the pudding. I’m an athlete at the end of the day, I understand that I have to compete, and I feel like what I did today solidified who I am as a player.”
Edmonds: “It went just exactly as I planned. One little slip on the (defensive back) drill but other than that, I couldn’t have planned it to go any better.”
Brown: “In the weight room and in movement. My lateral speed and my lateral quickness, I think that showed a lot to some of the scouts. Being able to run a 4.30 (second) in the 5-10-5, that’s really big. Being able to do a 7.20 (second) in the (L-Cone Drill), that’s also pretty big. And then just showing that I can move in space, doing some (defensive back) drills and twisting my hips, that’s something that is also really good.”
Torrence: “I’d say in my drills, being able to move with my size and my length.”
Sanders: “I would say my fluidity, getting out of breaks. Like I said, the football part of it at the end being the most natural, but more so like the (shuttle) drill and the (L-Cone) Drill. Just showing that I’m really good at getting in and out of breaks and get my (40-yard time), showing my quick bursts and whatnot… I feel like that’s probably what I put best on display today, just my explosiveness.”
Did you get to talk to any scouts?
Mallory: “What I’m hearing from a lot of scouts, as far as today and just lately, guys like my mentality. The scouts love what I can bring to the table, they love what I can do for a team. They love the mindset I can bring to a room. And they also love my knowledge of the game. I’m not just a guy that wants to line up and attack, I feel I can understand an offense, I feel I can understand sets, understand backfields, understand blocks.”
Brown: “I’ve heard scouts say I can move really well, so that’s good to hear, especially for your first time actually doing this.”
Torrence: “They just liked me being myself. Just showing who I am when I’m off the field, just around other people. So I’m just showing them who I really am, who Ro Torrence is.”
Sanders: “I talked with the Jets receivers coach quite a bit. At the end, more for routes, but before we had connected before we started the gym part. I connected with the (Pittsburgh) Steelers scout a little bit but other than that, haven’t really spoken to any scouts today.”
What are the next steps?
Brown: “My agent will be contacting the Carolina Panthers. I just got their card, and hopefully (there are) some more teams lined up, so we’ll just go from there.”
Mallory: “I know I will probably get another pro day from the Chicago Bears coming up soon. So I want to go home, at least see family, kind of unwind, relax my body. But I know I’ve got to get right back into it.”
Torrence: “I have a couple (meetings) lined up. I’m actually going to meet with the (New York) Jets and (Minnesota) Vikings after this, and I’m going to a local day for the Cardinals in April.”
Sanders: “The rest of this week, I might just not (go to) the weight room and stuff, (I) might just do rehab and things, get my legs back and whatnot. Do some recovery just to feel 100% again, but after that really just getting back into the lab. Hopefully something comes as far as NFL-wise, but I’ve already got (Canadian Football League) tryout dates. My agent is certified with the CFL and (United Football League), so those are definitely options. And shoot, at this point, even the Europe League, I just want to get back to it.”
Other Things We Heard
Pittsburgh Steelers Scout Kelvin Fisher: “It’s good to come out here and see the guys in person. You can only tell so much from film but you get out here and see how fast they are in person things like that.”
CFL Scout Eric Merrida: “I like to see the work that the guys have put in. We’ll see who is really stepping up. Going through the season from a health standpoint we all get banged up. Whoever turns around the fastest, really changes their bodies we want to see.”
While Mallory, whose 10 tackles for loss in 2023 ranked second on the Sun Devils, was listed at 275 pounds during the 2023 season, the defensive tackle weighed in at a lean 265 pounds for Pro Day. This change in weight doesn’t necessarily come as a surprise, as Mallory’s weight has fluctuated throughout his six-year collegiate career — he weighed up to 350 pounds during his time at Michigan State. However, he’s shown an ability to shed off significant amounts of weight on multiple occasions, and had a specific reason why he came to Pro Day lighter than he was during the season.
“For one, being able to showcase what I can do at my weight class. I understand that it’s definitely light, and during the offseason, I try to be a little bit lighter just to showcase that I can run and be fast, so today I felt like I put a lot of emphasis on the drills… I really wanted to showcase my speed today.
“I know 260, 265 (pounds), as far as interior defensive lineman, isn’t the ideal weight in the NFL. But today I wanted to showcase my speed. I understand that at my previous school I was a little bit heavier, and I know on the film, you can’t really see how fast I am. Today I wanted the scouts to see me up close and personal, that I can actually be a fast player. There are a lot of places that I feel I can be versatile, can scoot out there for defensive end, maybe not cover anybody… I think showcasing that I can be fast can add a little bit to my versatility for my profile.”
Observed teams represented in Attendance: Bills, Raiders, Giants, Steelers, Bears, Dolphins, Cardinals, Saints, Commanders, Colts, Texans, Jaguars, Bucs, Lions, Broncos, Jets, Vikings, Patriots, Falcons, Titans, CFL.
