Pro Day Preview: What's at stake for Kentucky prospects in key pre-draft event

The Senior Bowl, East-West Shrine Bowl, and Hula Bowl have all been completed. The NFL Scouting Combine is in the books. The next section of the draft process is the pro day circuit. That all goes down on Tuesday at the Nutter Field House.

Kentucky will host its annual pro day on Tuesday. KSR will be in the house to provide coverage of the event. Most of the NFL is expected to be represented in Lexington. There will be scouts, general managers, assistant general managers, and probably a few coaches. The program will have some buzz for this monumental yearly event that can often determine if Day 3 picks lock in draft spots or have to go the undrafted free agent route.

Who are the Kentucky players with the most at stake entering this event? KSR is previewing another pro day right now.

The Participants

• Zion Childress (Safety)
• Eli Cox (Offensive Line)
• Marques Cox (Offensive Line)
• Jamon Dumas-Johnson (Linebacker)
• Maxwell Hairston (Cornerback)
• D’Eryk Jackson (Linebacker)
• Gerald Mincey (Offensive Line)
• Octavious Oxendine (Defensive Line)
• Alex Raynor (Kicker)
• Tre’vonn Rybka (Defensive Line)
• Kristian Story (Safety)
• Demie Sumo-Karngbaye (Running Back)
• Deone Walker (Defensive Line)
• J.J. Weaver (EDGE)

Schedule

• 11:00 a.m. — Measurements
• 11:30 a.m. — Vertical, broad jump, and 225-pound bench press reps
• TBD — 40-yard dash, short shuttle, 3-cone shuttle, position drills

What’s at stake?

Maxwell Hairston

The Kentucky cornerback had a big performance at the combine and might not be very active at Kentucky’s pro day. Will Hairston compete in the short shuttle or three-cone shuttle in Lexington? That is really the only question. It could be a light day for Kentucky’s top draft prospect.

Deone Walker

We’ve seen some slippage for the Kentucky defensive tackle throughout the pre-draft process. At the combine, Walker only complete the vertical and broad jump. Kentucky’s pro day is a big day for the potential second-round pick. Most of the attention and buzz for this even will surround Walker during his athletic testing. The three-and-done could use a strong performance.

Jamon Dumas-Johnson

Similar to Walker, the linebacker decided not to test when in Indianapolis. That puts some more pressure on the pro day. Dumas-Johnson will be a Day 3 pick on draft weekend but the results at pro day could determine how high/slow. Tuesday will be a big day for the former Georgia transfer.

Eli Cox

The four-year starter at guard and center for Kentucky was one of the biggest winners for at the combine thanks to some strong on-field testing. There might not be a need for Cox to do much at Kentucky’s pro day. Making a good impression in meetings could be all that is needed for Cox moving forward. The Nicholasville (Ky.) West Jessamine went from potential undrafted free agent to Day 3 pick lock during the pre-draft process.

Zion Childress

The veteran with experience at safety and nickel participated in the Hula Bowl, but did not receive an invite to the combine. Tuesday will give Childress the opportunity to test and get his name on the Day 3 radar.

J.J. Weaver

The Louisville (Ky.) Moore product is in the same boat as Childress after participating in the Hula Bowl, but not receiving an invite to the combine. Some good testing could get the sixth-year veteran with 2,446 career defensive snaps played on the Day 3 radar.

D’Eryk Jackson

The redshirt senior was having an All-SEC season until getting hurt against Florida in October. Jackson now has dealt with an Achilles injury and a shoulder injury that caused him to miss time on the field. That is something that could hurt his draft stock. The three-year starter will be looking to get into the Day 3 conversation with a strong performance at pro day.

Undrafted free agent watch

Zion Childress, J.J. Weaver, and D’Eryk Jackson are potentially on Day 3 watch but are all a safe bet to be scooped up quickly as an undrafted free agent once the draft ends. The rest of the Kentucky prospects in attendance will be looking to improve their case as an undrafted free agent.

Tre’vonn Rybka, Octavious Oxendine, Marques Cox, Gerald Mincey, Kristian Story, and Demie Sumo-Karngbaye will all be looking to show that they are healthy and that they can help an NFL team. None of these players have measurements on the record so that makes that part of the event important for them. Alex Raynor will be attempting to do the same with a kicking workout at Nutter in an effort to set up a team tryout after the draft process.

Tuesday is a big day for all 11 former Kentucky players.