Football | 3/26/2015 12:04:00 PM
MONMOUTH, Ore. – Almost two weeks ago, Western Oregon University football player
Tyrell Williams showed how his hard work over the past four years has paid off when he shined in front of scouts from nearly every National Football League (NFL) team at the annual Oregon State Pro Day held Friday, March 13, inside the Truax Indoor Center in Corvallis.
Posting numbers that would have blown away the competition at the annual NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis, Williams turned heads and put himself on the radar of at least four teams that would like him to come for one-on-one workouts prior to the NFL Draft in May.
If Williams had received an invite to the NFL Scouting Combine, then he would have ranked in the Top 15 among wide receivers in the three-cone drill, 40-yard dash, vertical jump, and broad leap. In the three-cone drill, Williams posted a time of 6.53 seconds that would have ranked ahead of Justin Coleman of Tennessee who posted a NFL Combine-best 6.61 seconds.
When asked about his performance, Williams said, "Coming in, I knew what I was capable of doing numbers-wise. I wanted to make sure that I was able to accomplish all that on the numbers end and catch all the balls that were thrown to me. I also wanted to come out with confidence and go out there and have fun. That was the main thing and not really worry about what was going to come afterwards. Just go out there and do what I knew I could do to start with."
In the midst of OSU's Pro Day, Williams had the opportunity to catch passes from the Pac-12's all-time leading passer, Sean Mannion.
"It was awesome," said Williams when asked about working with Mannion. "I went out there that whole week before and worked out with him probably every day so I kind of got to know him. It was a little more comfortable after going through the routes together. It was fun. It was awesome being able to go and throw with someone who is up on the draft stoke. Great experience."
Throughout the day, the attention was mostly on Mannion but Williams began to catch the attention of the scouts as well.
"I feel that eyes were on both of us," commented Williams. "After I ran what I ran, did the field stuff, and jumped high then as the day went on, a lot of scouts started coming up to me in the middle of the workout and talking to me. Then I knew that coming into the passing that it was going to start to get a lot more and throughout the day they wanted to see what my routes were and if I caught the ball. I got a little nervous and excited, but it was fun and I feel like they were definitely looking at Mannion, but after he throws, you have to see who he's throwing to."
Following his strong performance at the OSU Pro Day, Williams has garnered attention from some NFL teams.
"I've had quite a few calls from teams setting up workouts and my agent has been talking with teams as well," stated Williams. "I'm just getting ready to go and do a couple of workouts for teams and keep going from there. With the workouts, I want to go into those and be prepared for whatever the scout wants to put me through, make sure that I'm still in shape, and catching all the balls are the main things. Hopefully through those workouts, I will be able to impress them more and maybe get some visits. Once the draft day comes, hopefully good things will come there."
Leading up to the OSU Pro Day, Williams took some time to head east for more than two weeks to work with Brian Martin, who is the Director of NFL Combine and Off Season Training Program at NFL Preparation.
When asked about that experience, Williams stated, "I went to New Jersey for 16 days in the beginning of February to work with NFL Prep and Brian Martin. They helped me get ready for all the testing, working on the 40 start and just how to run the drills such as the three-cone and the short-shuttle. How to get the steps right for those. I also did strength training and explosive training just to get the vertical and the broad a little better and have that 40-yard to be a little faster and explosive out."
Upon his return to Oregon, Williams continued the workouts with Western Oregon University's Director of Sports Performance, Cori Metzger.
"Once I got back from (NFL Prep), I worked with Coach Metzger out here and she had everything for me to be able to continue working with the same stuff that they had out there," said Williams. "I was out there every day with my friend, Dylan Simpkins, helping me on the field video taping my workouts. I was a lot of fun."
With two current members of WOU's coaching staff –
Jason Slowey and
Kimo von Oelhoffen – that have gone through the same situations that Williams is experiencing, he has reached out to them for advice on what to expect and what the future might hold.
"I've talked with Slowey, as he is the main guy that has been helping me through this," said Williams. "He is the one that set me up with the NFL Prep in New Jersey, as it is the same guy that he worked out with when he went through the process. He has been helping me through it all and letting me know what to expect. I plan to talk with Coach Kimo who was in the NFL for more than 10 years. I'm going to sit down and talk with him more about the process and what to expect once the process is over and you actually get into a camp. Talking to those two has been a big help."
Following in the foot steps of former Wolves such as Kevin Boss and Coach Slowey is something that Williams has dreamed about and began putting into motion nearly four years ago.
"It has always been a dream since I've been growing up," stated Williams. "My main goal has been to hopefully make it to the NFL. Once I was able to start my freshman year, I knew that if I kept working and getting stronger then I possibly would have a chance since I was already pretty tall so if I could just gain some weight and get my speed up then I knew that I could possibly have a chance, but it is still surreal and it does not feel real at all. It has been awesome. I guess about my junior year, I started talking with some scouts and they started giving me feedback on what I should get better at. I started working on that stuff in the off-season and come my senior year, I started talking with more scouts and saw that it could become a possibility."
Between now and Draft Day in May, Williams will continue to sharpen his skills and improve on little areas that he wants to focus on.
"Right now, I just got my workouts from Coach Metzger," said Williams. "I'm trying to stay in shape and get a little bit stronger. I'm not trying to put on weight, but trying to be more physical and stuff like that. Just trying to get a little bit faster doing some track workouts with Metzger. Stay focused on the football aspects and not have too much going on around me."
The first weekend in May cannot come soon enough for Williams and his family, as he plans on sitting at home in Salem eagerly anticipating the phone call that could change his life forever.
"I will probably be at home with my parents waiting for the phone call," Williams said with a smile. "I don't even know how it will feel, as it would be unbelievable. I can't wait."
