Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles, Shawn Poindexter shine at Arizona Pro Day

The NFL Draft has not been a welcoming place for the Arizona Wildcats in recent years, with only three players taken in the last four go-arounds. Safety Dane Cruikshank was the lone Arizona player drafted in 2018, going in the fifth round to the Tennessee Titans, after no former Wildcats were selected in 2017.

A quick glance at most 2019 mock drafts indicates this trend will continue, though if an ex-Wildcat does have his name called in late April in Nashville he was among the prospects in action Friday at Arizona’s annual Pro Day.

Among those in action inside Arizona Stadium were wide receivers Shawn Poindexter and Tony Ellison, offensive lineman Layth Friekh, defensive lineman PJ Johnson, defensive back Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles, kicker Josh Pollack and punter Dylan Klumph.

The event, attended by scouts from nearly every NFL team (as well as ones from the Canadian Football League), featured prospects going through a variety of on-field drills meant to showcase their skill sets. For Poindexter, that meant a lot of leaping in the air to show off his innate ability to haul in passes, something he showed in the fall when he tied a single-season school record with 11 touchdown catches.

Poindexter followed that up with a TD reception at the East-West Shrine Game in January, which led to interest from a handful of teams.

“I performed pretty well, and I got some positive feedback for that,” said Poindexter, who measured in at 6-foot-4.5 and 212 pounds on Friday. “I was running by guys, getting open, making catches and stuff.”

Among the clubs taking a close look at Poindexter is the San Francisco 49ers, which happens to be the team his father grew up being a diehard fan of. He said he met with the organization’s national scout on Thursday, and that led to former NFL receiver Miles Austin (now a Niners assistant) coming to Tucson to check Poindexter out.

“I got a chance to talk and listen to Miles Austin, that was awesome,” said Poindexter, who caught passes from UA receivers coach Taylor Mazzone. “He’s a legend in the game. We were mainly just talking about putting the foot in the ground.”

Flannigan-Fowles, a Tucson native, showed off his 6-foot-1.5, 205-pound frame in a series of drills that showed off his mobility.

“They told me I had a good day,” Flannigan-Fowles said of the scouts he spoke with. “They like how I’m able to move, I look fluid. I’m athletic. I have good hands, they said. I need to use my length a little more, that’s what scouts are telling me.”

Arizona's Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles ran a 4.57 40 today at pro day. That's a good time for a safety measuring 6-1 5/8, 205 pounds.

— Michael Lev (@MichaelJLev) March 15, 2019

Back in Tucson for the first time since his senior season ended in November, Flannigan-Fowles had spent the past four months training in California while taking online courses to complete his General Studies degree. He said it’s been a rigorous process without much downtime.

“Right now I wake up, eat, go work out, eat, work out again, maybe have a third workout and then I go home and take my online classes,” he said. “First workout I’m running, second I’m lifting, third I’m doing position drills.”

Flannigan-Fowles, who has a visit planned next month with the Indianapolis Colts, said while the NFL is his dream he’d play for any professional league if given the opportunity. But completing his studies is also a priority, just in case.

“If I don’t finish these three little classes left to graduate I’m going to kick myself,” he said, adding that if football doesn’t work out “I want to work for Nike in sales.”

Pro Day didn’t go tremendously for everyone, however. Friekh appeared to injure his calf while running the 40-yard dash, while Johnson struggled with some of his agility drills.

from Arizona Desert Swarm - All Posts https://ift.tt/2FfIF21
via IFTTT