Lumberjacks Look Impressive at NFL Pro Day
3/31/2015 12:00:00 AM | Football
NACOGDOCHES, Texas -- Stephen F. Austin held its annual Pro Day Tuesday at Homer Bryce Stadium as a number of NFL scouts were on hand to see the talent the Lumberjack seniors offer.
Five SFA seniors worked out for the scouts, including wide receivers Tyler Boyd and DJ Ward, linebacker Collin Garrett and defensive back Maurice Poullard. Former Lumberjacks Keith Lawson and Caleb Nelson also returned to Nacgodoches to work out and pursue their dreams of a professional contract.
But the biggest buzz of the day was to see how Gus Johnson would perform on his home turf after an impressive performance at the NFL Combine last month.
Johnson held out of the majority of the Pro Day exercises, but did take to the line to try and improve his 40-yard dash time. After running a 4.70 at the Combine, Johnson posted unofficial times of 4.56 (with the wind) and 4.69 (against the wind) after weighing in at 5-10, 216 pounds.
"It was nice to be back in a familiar setting and it definitely helped my mindset," Johnson said afterwards. "The Combine was pretty intense -- very scripted, very high pressure. This was much more comfortable for me. I'd put in a lot of work since the Combine, so I was just happy to see some better results."
Beginning in the SFA weight room, the `Jacks worked out in the broad jump, vertical jump and bench press. Both Poullard (10-4) and Ward (10-3) registered broad jumps that surpassed 10 feet while Garrett stood out in the vertical jump, leading 38 inches after checking in at 235 pounds.
Garrett also raised some eyebrows in the bench press, putting up 21 reps at 225 pounds, showing off the strength he has added since the season ended. Ward knocked out 13 reps on the bench with Poullard completing 10 reps.
Out on the field, the participants competed in the 10 and 20-yard dashes, leading into the 40. Poullard had one of the fastest 40s of the day, registering an unofficial time of 4.52 with Boyd running a 4.68.
Poullard also had the best times among the `Jacks in both the 20-yard shuttle (4.31) and 60-yard shuttle (11.68) with Garrett posting unofficial times of 4.40 and 11.81, respectively.
"It was a lot of pressure, knowing that everything you've worked for, everything you've trained for, comes down to one chance," Garrett said. "Hopefully (the scouts) were able to see my ability and see my potential. I was happy with how I performed, but now I know it's out of my hands."
For Garrett, he was especially hoping for a good result considering the workouts came on his 22nd birthday.
"It would be the greatest birthday present I could hope for, getting a chance to pursue my dream," Garrett said. "It definitely would be a birthday I'd always remember if what I did today led to making a roster."
The workout ended with positional drills as each player got to showcase their individual talents. One of Johnson's final plays resulted in a long catch and run up the far sideline, ending in the familiar purple of the SFA endzone that Johnson had found many times during his Lumberjack career. As Johnson was jogging back, head coach Clint Conque yelled out to him how it felt to be back in the purple.
"It's good to be home," Johnson replied.
Johnson and the rest of the Lumberjack hopefuls now have four weeks to continue to work out and train before finding out if they were able to catch the attention of any NFL teams. The 2015 NFL Draft will be held April 30-May 2 in Chicago.
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