Turf Show Times
329 players from 86 schools invited to this year’s workout
Invitees to the 2025 NFL Draft Scouting Combine were announced this week and now the Los Angeles Rams player personnel staff turns its full attention to the February 24 through March 3 extravaganza. This year 329 prospects got the call to Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana to ply their wares to NFL scouts.
NFL fan sites and legacy media are all out with “Who was Snubbed?” pieces. Generally speaking, the NFL does a good job of selecting prospects for the spotlight. The larger programs are always well (over?) represented, but this year, 86 schools sent prospective candidates to the workouts and meetings.
TST is not immune to providing “snub” content. Here’s a few players that didn’t rate an invite, but I found interesting just the same. It’s also a chance to mention names who don’t get much publicity otherwise.
While the NFL is trending towards mobile quarterbacks, the big, strong pocket passing gunslingers will always get long looks. These three candidates were all, at one time, considered to draft pick worthy. Each struggled in their final college season and dropped off the radar. Although longshots, they all have size/athleticism/arm traits.
Donovan Smith- Houston 6’ 4” 228 lb. @ Tropical Bowl
Two pundits mocked Smith in Round 1 last summer. Spent three years at Texas Tech, missed one to injury (shoulder) and was beaten out by Tyler Shough in others. Smith transferred to Houston and had a productive junior season. The Cougars hired a new coach, and Smith re-injured the shoulder missing spring and summer workouts. He struggled at the start in the new offense and the new coach switched in his own recruit.
DJ Uiagalelei- Florida State 6’ 4” 252 lb. @ DraftBuzz
Top recruit out of high school. Up-and-down college career with three seasons at Clemson, one at Oregon State and closing out at Florida State. Began to turn the corner at Clemson, but wanted to run less and throw deeper. Transfered to Oregon State and had a solid season in 2023. With the Pac-12 imploding, he jumped to Florida State and struggled before ending the season early with a hand injury.
KJ Jefferson- Central Florida 6’ 3” 247 lb. @ DraftBuzz
The least-heralded of the three, Jefferson nonetheless had three productive season’s with Arkansas. There, the offense was tailored to accentuate his strength’s and mask trouble areas. A one-read scheme where he could show off his arm and considerable running skills. He wanted to improve his draft grade (mid/late) and went to a more pro style offense. It was a disaster and by mid-season he bottomed out on the depth chart.
Very deep class for running backs, 29 were invited and I have a draftable grade on all of them. These two UDFA candidates could be a cheap option at RB#3.
Lan Larrison- UC Davis 5’ 11” 209 lb.
An all-around talent who can run, catch, block and play special teams. Good...
