Pro day a success for USC

On a sunny afternoon in Los Angeles, nearly a hundred NFL coaches and scouts descended upon Cromwell Field for USC’s annual pro day to evaluate the Trojans’ top prospects in preparation for this month’s NFL draft.

Quick · Safety Taylor Mays, who played four seasons as a Trojan, didn’t run the 40-yard dash at Wednesday’s pro day, but he did run both the short and long shuttles and competed in individual defensive back drills. - Tim Tran | Daily Trojan

With the draft looming on the horizon, many former Trojans were looking to use Wednesday’s workouts as an opportunity to move up the draft boards. At this point in time, however, it’s unclear whether any of them significantly improved their draft stock.

Safety Taylor Mays, along with tight end Anthony McCoy, running back Joe McKnight and wide receiver Damian Williams, opted out of the 40-yard dash, the most weighted drill of the program.

Nonetheless, Mays, who ran a 4.43 last month at the NFL scouting combine, still had a solid performance in some of the position drills conducted by NFL coaches and later noted the importance.

While McCoy and Williams’ workouts were rather nondescript, McKnight’s afternoon was noteworthy simply because he failed to meet expectations once again. The Louisiana native struggled in both the short- and long-shuttle runs, tripping up twice in the latter. In an interview with the NFL Network, McKnight claimed that he had re-aggravated a toe injury before the workout.

“Everything happens for a reason,” McKnight said. “Hopefully something good will come out of this.”

But while the day did not seem to radically improve the draft stock of some players, it might pay big dividends for others.

Defensive end Everson Griffen, whose 40-yard dash time at the combine last month was second best among defensive lineman at 4.66 seconds, saw a significant improvement when he recorded a personal best of 4.59 seconds.

“I just showed them that I’m ready to go,” Griffen said. “I can contribute. I’m ready to work at any given time. I’m just wishing for the best right now.”

While scouts in attendance noted that the 6-foot-3 defensive lineman might have launched himself into the first round, his draft slot doesn’t seem to be his biggest concern.

“Wherever I end up, I’m ready to play,” Griffen said. “First round, second round, it doesn’t really matter to me. I just want to play football. Put me on a team, and I’m going to contribute.”

In addition to Griffen’s strong effort, there were others who also raised eyebrows.

Cornerback Kevin Thomas ran a 4.43 in the 40-yard dash, which was the fastest for any Trojan, and offensive lineman Alex Parsons posted a 4.90, one of the best times that any lineman has posted this spring.

Safety Will Harris had one of the more surprising  performers with 35 bench press reps of 225 pounds — second best on the team and even besting offensive lineman Jeff Byers and defensive tackle Averell Spicer.

“I made sure I went out and dedicated my life to this training,” said Harris, who finished with six interceptions last season. “I know I had to come out here and put on a show for these guys, and that’s exactly what happened.”

All in all, Wednesday’s pro day provided an opportunity for many Trojans to eventually earn an NFL spot and an opportunity to build upon their time spent with Pete Carroll’s USC program.

In particular, individuals such as Griffen and McKnight are looking to use the NFL draft process as an opportunity to experience better professional careers after underachieving during their collegiate years.

“We didn’t win a national championship or score a lot,” McKnight noted. “I just felt my career didn’t go as I wanted it to. But I got a chance to make up for it, and I’m going to try my best.”

Perhaps no one values the opportunity for a second chance more than Stafon Johnson. After suffering a life-threatening neck injury last September, Johnson got back on the football field for the first time in the Senior Bowl last January and is now looking to prove that he is more than deserving of a spot in this month’s draft.

“Today was a day where I had to show that I was back to normal,” said Johnson, who posted a 4.62 40-yard dash time. “I’m at full speed. Each month, I’ve been getting stronger and faster. I’m the same running back that I was before.”

If Johnson’s past few months are any indication, every experience like this one is an opportunity for players to work toward a better future.