By Andy Korvar
Linebacker Jelani Woseley set the tone early when he shouted, “I need money, man.”
Thus started the first day of spring, and one of the most important days for the “boys of fall” — their NFL pro day.
As the team’s members headed out onto the field, they were greeted by former Bobcat and current Colts wide receiver, LaVon Brazill. He offered words of advice before players ran their 40s — he’d been doing the same thing just a year before.
Woseley heeded Brazill’s words as he caught scouts’ eyes by showcasing a high level of explosiveness during the position drills.
“I wanted to have a good day overall,” Woseley said of his performance.
This was one of the last chances for the Ohio players to impress before April’s NFL draft. Five different teams who were in Athens saw the Bobcats’ pro day — the Oakland Raiders, the Houston Texans, the Cleveland Browns, Cincinnati Bengals and the Indianapolis Colts.
Ohio’s highest-rated prospect was guard Eric Herman. He is currently projected to be a sixth round pick in this year’s draft and was the Bobcats’ lone NFL combine representative.
After consulting his agent, Herman decided not to participate in any physicality drills, although he did participate in the on-field drills.
“I thought I did pretty well at the combine and talked with my agent, and he said we can just work on footwork and get some communication with the scouts,” Herman said.
Herman’s linemate Skyler Allen completed 30 reps on the 225-pound bench press, the highest number of the day and second highest on the team behind Herman’s 36-rep performance at last month’s combine.
“The whole crowd — it’s like playing a football game,” Allen said of the day’s atmosphere. “It’s like game day all over again.”
Another touted prospect coming into the day was defensive end Tremayne Scott. With a good day, he could have propelled himself into the end of the draft.
He benched 225 pounds only 14 times and clocked a 40 time of more than five seconds, leaving room for improvement, but he felt good his efforts.
“I think I could have done better in certain positions, but I think I did all right,” he said.
ak840511@ohiou.edu
