March 9, 2007
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Purdue hosted its NFL workout day on Friday, March 9, at the Mollenkopf Athletic Center. NFL coaches, scouts and other personnel were in attendance, representing 18 NFL teams, to assess 11 draft-eligible players, including seven Boilermakers.
The draft-eligible players from Purdue included Nick Cavallo, Andre Chattams, George Hall, Uche Nwaneri, Mike Otto, Al Royal and Anthony Spencer. The workout gave the NFL personnel an opportunity to evaluate players through height and weight measurements, a series of physical tests, including the bench press and the 40-yard dash as well as individual player workouts.
"The NFL coaches and scouts watched more of me one-on-one to see my athletic ability," offensive lineman Otto said. "I feel like I moved around pretty well. I got tired though; it was just me and Uche (Nwaneri) out there (as offensive linemen) without having breaks."
The Pro Day workouts at individual schools follow last month's NFL Scouting Combine that took place in Indianapolis, and are scheduled at universities throughout March and April. Nwaneri, Otto and Spencer participated in the NFL Scouting Combine, and had the opportunity to improve their stock during Friday's Pro Day.
"At the NFL Scouting Combine I ran 4.70 40-yard dash, and I knew I could run faster than that," defensive end Spencer said. "Today I ran a 4.64 40-yard dash, so I ran my 40 faster and had a good individual workout."
These workouts also give draft-eligible players who did not participate in the NFL Scouting Combine exposure to the NFL coaches and scouts.
"This is a great opportunity," linebacker Hall said. "There are a lot of NFL teams here, and whenever there's a fewer amount of guys being evaluated you have a great opportunity to show them what you can do."
The 2007 NFL Draft will be held in New York City from April 28 to 29.