Three Terps Head to NFL Combine this Weekend
2/27/2002 7:00:00 AM | Football
Feb. 27, 2002
COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Three former University of Maryland football players - Melvin Fowler, Charles Hill and Tony Okanlawon - will be among 333 former collegiate players who will participate in the National Football League Combine at Indianapolis' RCA Dome this weekend.
The combine, which runs from March 1-4, is used by NFL teams to gauge the size, athleticism and intelligent of potential draftees for the 2002 draft. The combine is an important weekend for both players and teams as a look at the numbers would suggest. Of the 246 players taken in last year's NFL draft, only 30 were not invited to the combine and none of those 30 players were drafted above the fourth round of the seven-round draft.
Fowler (center), Hill (defensive tackle) and Okanlawon (cornerback) each completed their tenures at Maryland in grand fashion a year ago as they helped lead the Terps to the 2001 ACC championship, the school's first since 1985.
A schedule of events at the draft includes the following -- after dinner on Thursday (Feb. 28), players will get a brief orientation on how to conduct themselves in the coming weeks (i.e. post-draft activities and what life is like for an NFL player).
At 7:30 a.m. on Friday, offensive linemen and kickers head to the RCA Dome for measurements. The physicals begin at 8:15. All 32 teams have trainers and medical staff present. After that, there are two interviews (one that is used to have the player's physical build on file and the other to learn more about the player).
At 1:00 p.m., strength tests are conducted where players bench 225 pounds as many repetitions as they can. Following that, they take the Wunderlic test, which some teams use to evaluate a player's intelligence.
After dinner, players make their way through the first floor of the hotel, where all 32 teams have their own rooms set up for player interviews, psychological testing and socializing. The team officials are well-stocked with hats, shorts and other team apparel to entice players to stop in and visit with them.
Saturday morning, the first group returns to the RCA Dome for speed and agility testing. They'll run 40-yard dashes, do jumping drills and position-specific football drills. By noon Saturday, the combine will be coming to a close.
Updated player biographies for Fowler, Hill and Okanlawon can be obtained by clicking on their names above.
