Christian Gonzalez speaking to David Blough for NFL guidance

Oregon cornerback Christian Gonzalez prepared for the NFL Draft and scouting combine with a little help from quarterback David Blough.

Gonzalez’s connection with Blough stems from his sister. Gonzalez is related to Colombian-American hurdler Melissa Gonzalez, who competed in the 2021 Tokyo Olympic Games. Blough married Melissa in March of 2019.

The former Duck talked about his relationship with the Arizona Cardinals quarterback.

“Yeah, big resource, you know, as someone in my direct family that I can talk to that has been through the process of playing in college (and the pros),” Gonzalez said. “He’s somebody that I talked to growing up all the time, you know, he was always around our house. I remember playing with him when I was like 10 years old, you know, just running around, throwing the ball. So it’s just all come full circle. Great to have him.”

Gonzalez played for Colorado in 2020 and ‘21 before his transfer to Oregon. In three college seasons, he finished with 128 total tackles, 100 solo tackles, six tackles for loss, four interceptions and 17 pass deflections.

As a member of the Class of 2020, Gonzalez was a four-star recruit out of The Colony (Texas) High, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He was the No. 43 overall recruit in the state, the No. 27 safety in the class and the No. 311 overall recruit in the class.

More on the 2023 NFL Draft

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

Round 1 of the NFL Draft will begin 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 is 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.

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