The first day of practices at the Senior Bowl kicks off with roughly two hours of watching shirtless attendees weigh in to log official measurements for height and weight. The day got better, to say the least.
Offense
- K.J. Hill, a former Ohio State receiver that weighed in at 6-foot, 192 pounds with just 29-inch arms, blew the doors off the one-on-one drills at practice. He beat Wake Forest's Essang Bassey a handful of times and stood out as the most creative, efficient route-runner in Mobile.
- Former Saint John's offensive tackle Ben Bartch was a shock to many in the one-on-one drills. Weighing in at 6-foot-5, 308 pounds with 33-inch arms, Bartch is the only Division III player in attendance for the Senior Bowl, but he shined against Division I competition all day long. He logged strong reps in the one-on-ones against Alabama's Terrell Lewis and Florida edge defender Jabari Zuniga.
- Former USC standout wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. performed well in the interview process and had a handful of impressive reps in the one-on-one drills. His torching of Bassey was easily his best play of the day.
- Denzel Mims didn't have any highlight-reel plays in the one-on-one drills, but he flashed explosiveness and strong hands throughout.
- Former Utah State quarterback Jordan Love didn't have a good showing to start his week in Mobile. He was very inconsistent from an accuracy standpoint and missed a handful of wide-open throws. Love's inconsistency shouldn't come as a surprise considering his tape and grading profile with the Aggies, but the fact that it continues to show up here at the Senior Bowl is not great for his draft stock.
- Former Clemson guard John Simpson fell victim to the terrors that are Javon Kinlaw and Marlon Davidson. To say he had a rough first day would be an understatement.
Defense
- Javon Kinlaw had himself a day. The former JUCO product turned South Carolina standout weighed in at 6-foot-5, 315 pounds with 34-inch arms and 10-inch hands — all fantastic numbers for a pass-rushing defensive tackle at the next level. He also dropped some jaws in the interview process and torched Simpson and others in the one-on-one drills.
- Former Auburn defensive lineman Marlon Davidson also turned in a handful of strong reps in the one-on-one drills. He bulked up to 297 pounds and kicked inside to go against guards, and the results were spectacular. He should improve his draft stock with a full-time switch to interior defensive line and more reps like the ones he had on his first day throughout the week.
- Troy Pride Jr., a former outside cornerback for Notre Dame, couldn't have had a better first day at the Senior Bowl. He was a fantastic interview that is aware of where his game needs to get better to start the next level, and his reps in the one-on-one drills were special. He was in SMU wideout James Proche‘s back pocket for the entire practice and even logged a pass breakup on a slant from Pittman.
- Former UCLA cornerback Darnay Holmes played a majority of outside cornerback for the Bruins but will likely kick inside at the next level after weighing in at 5-foot-10, 192 pounds. He's a high-energy, vocal kid with great confidence and competitiveness. His aggressive approach to the cornerback position led to positive results in the one-on-one drills.
Top Performer
Troy Pride Jr. and K.J. Hill each had an impressive day to start the week of practices here in Mobile, but I'd be foolish if I didn' say Javon Kinlaw was the top performer. He could not participate in drills for the rest of the week and skip the game at this point. He's proved he's in a tier above this crop of prospects.
Bottom Performer
It's just one day and a small sample size of reps, but Wake Forest cornerback Essang Bassey needs to bounceback after Day 1. Weighing in at just 5-foot-9, 191 pounds, he will be limited to a slot cornerback role in a zone-heavy defense in the NFL, but he can't afford to get torched in man coverage like he did on Day 1 if he's going to prove add value in other roles.
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