Four North Carolina football stars invited to 2023 NFL Combine

The 2023 NFL Scouting Combine is only a few weeks away and the event will be held where it always is, in Indianapolis, Indiana. Football prospects from around the country are continuing their preparations to make their potential NFL dreams a reality in a few months. The reality of the NFL Draft is that there are no guarantees. While being invited to the NFL Scouting Combine is exciting for prospects and an excellent showcase, it’s also worth noting that plenty of players that are invited go undrafted each and every year. Let’s take a look the players on the North Carolina Tar Heels‘ roster that will be in Indianapolis in a few weeks: wide receiver Josh Downs, wide receiver Antoine Green, offensive lineman Asim Richards, and linebacker Noah Taylor.

Josh Downs was one of the most electrifying receivers in all of college football the last two seasons for the Heels. In 2022, he hauled in 94 catches for 1,029 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns. In 2021, he put up even better numbers, hauling in 101 catches for 1,335 receiving yards. Despite his small size, Downs dominated at every level of the football field the past two seasons with his spectacular ball skills and electrifying speed (4.35 40-yard dash). He’s certainly going to be one of the most studied UNC prospects at the combine, no question about it.

Antoine Green put up very solid numbers for the Tar Heels the past two seasons, hauling in 72 total catches for 1,310 receiving yards, while bringing in 12 touchdowns. It’ll be interesting to see how he performs in combine drills.

Asim Richards did pretty well at the Senior Bowl. He looked good in certain drills, but got beaten in others. Richards performed poorly at the guard position in drills, but looked much more comfortable at the tackle position. He’ll get his chance to impress scouts yet again at the combine.

Noah Taylor is an interesting prospect. He flashed a tremendously high ceiling during his time with the Virginia Cavaliers, racking up seven sacks and two interceptions in 2019. Taylor injured his right knee in the first quarter against Pittsburgh this year, which forced him to miss the rest of the season. He’s got plenty of upside, but scouts and coaches will have to determine if they can get him back to the level that we saw years ago. The combine drills will be very important for a player of his caliber.

More on the 2023 NFL Draft and the NFL Combine

The 2023 NFL Draft is set to take place from Thursday, April 27 through Saturday, April 29 in Kansas City, Missouri. The event will be held at the plaza just outside of Union Station.

Round 1 of the NFL Draft is set to begin at 8 p.m. ET on Thursday, Apr. 27. Rounds 2-3 will begin at 7 p.m. ET on Friday, Apr. 28, and Rounds 4-7 will begin at 12 p.m. ET on Saturday, Apr. 29. The draft will be broadcasted throughout the weekend on both ESPN and NFL Network.

To be eligible for the NFL Draft, players must be at least three years removed from their final year of high school while having used up their collegiate eligibility. Underclassmen are able to request league approval to become eligible for the draft, as are players who have graduated prior to using up all of their collegiate eligibility. 100 underclassmen were approved for last year’s draft. 73 of those 100 underclassmen were granted special eligibility while 27 of them were underclassmen who had completed their college degrees.

The 2023 NFL Scouting Combine will take place from Feb. 28 through March 6 in Indianapolis.