On Location: On The Down Low

Running back PJ Hill played at Wisconsin under the “brats and cheddar” diet and was often criticized that his shape through the hips wasn’t exactly running back-friendly. Hill admitted almost sheepishly that by season’s end he was approaching 240 pounds, and eventually resisted the ill-fated label of “fat kid at camp” when he arrived at his pro workout facility Performance Management Professionals.

“That’s a big surprise for a lot of people,” Hill joked as he announced his size, which is now down to a cruiser-weight of 222 pounds. “My agent told me a lot of teams were saying I was coming in big and lazy…I was always a big back. I just wanted to show them [teams] that…I was a hard worker, I can get toned, I can work hard, lose weight.” If all works out according to plan, Hill expects his 40-time to be in the low 4.5’s or in the 4.4’s. That would be the right type of gain for Hill.

Michigan defensive end Tim Jamison weighed in at 256 pounds, a number that clearly surprised some. His playing weight exiting Ann Arbor was 263 pounds so this could be a potential sticking point as we march towards the draft. Is he defensive end or an outside linebacker? Or a ‘tweener? Where will he be in April and will teams know enough in advance to gauge him appropriately as a future NFL baller?

On Location: Ian Johnson - Bigger is Better

Ian Johnson, the running back from Boise State, is another player who used the time from the end of his college career until the Scouting Combine to bulk up as he prepares to play on Sundays. Joking that he doesn’t care to have pro teams remember him as the ‘guy who proposed right after beating Oklahoma’, Johnson sounded determined to show how much he has changed his body and approach to running with the football. An addition of 14 pounds should make him thicker, yet he is hoping to run a 4.42 or lower. Furthermore, he has dramatically upped his bench, making a significant jump from 12 reps. He fell a bit short of his goal of 28 or 29, throwing the bar up 26 times, which was still good enough for fifth among the running backs (including two fullbacks who were ahead of him). It should be interesting to see his numbers fall – certainly he will be a case of the numbers game correlating potentially to a higher draft slot.

Combine Results: Vertical Jump - OL

1. Travis Bright, OG, BYU - 35.5"
2. Lydon Murtha, Nebraska, OT – 35"
3. Brandon Walker, Oklahoma, OG - 34"
Matt Slauson, Nebraska, OG - 34"
5. William Beatty, UConn, OT - 33.5"
6. Xavier Fulton, Illinois, OT - 31"
Jonathan Luigs, Arkansas, C - 31"
A.Q. Shipley, Penn St., C- 31"
9. Andy Levitre, Oregon St., OG - 30.5"
Eric Wood, Louisville, C - 30.5"
Robert Brewster, Ball St., OT - 30.5"
Michael Oher, Mississippi, OT - 30.5"

Combine Results: 40-Yard Dash - TE

1. Jared Cook, South Carolina - 4.50
2. Shawn Nelson, Southern Miss - 4.56
3. Cameron Morrah, California - 4.66
4. Cornelius Ingram, Florida - 4.68
5. Marquez Branson, Central Arkansas - 4.71
6. David Johnson, Arkansas St. - 4.73
7. Jared Bronson, Central Washington- 4.76
8. Kory Sperry, Colorado St. - 4.77