Lawrence Okoye puts athletics on hold

[GDAWG]

First it was Marquise Goodwin (although that was expected) now it may be Lawrence Okoye:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/others ... lanta.html

[18.99s]

Re: Lawrence Okoye puts athletics on hold

I expect Jacko Gill will be invited to NFL tryouts after 2016.

[rainy.here]

Re: Lawrence Okoye puts athletics on hold

They referenced good Combine scores, which I couldn't find with a couple minutes searching. Anyone find/see them?

[GDAWG]

Re: Lawrence Okoye puts athletics on hold

They referenced good Combine scores, which I couldn't find with a couple minutes searching. Anyone find/see them?

He did not attend the NFL Combine. The NFL holds regional combines, and he said that he attended one of those.

[marknhj]

Re: Lawrence Okoye puts athletics on hold

Doesn't it help to have actually played the game before? I always look at situations like this with a large grain of salt; initially at least.

[batonless relay]

Re: Lawrence Okoye puts athletics on hold

Doesn't it help to have actually played the game before?

Usually, but there are a few really talented guys who have been succesful playing football without much experience. I don't think Jimmy Graham, NO Saints TE, played more than one year of college before going pro and I'm not sure if he had any high school football experience. (but he was American so the nuances of the game, even if unfamiliar, weren't completely foreign). A few other tight ends have had very little experience (Gates). But since we're talking about Okoye, there is another athlete who was an Okoye trailblazer.

Christian Okoye

Okoye was born in Enugu, Nigeria and did not play American football until 1984, when he joined the squad at California's Azusa Pacific University. He excelled in track & field, winning seven college titles in the shotput, discus, and hammer throw. The first time he attended an American football game he thought the game was boring.[1]
After the Nigerian government failed to select Okoye for the Olympics, he sought something else to do besides track & field and went out for American football. Initially, Okoye did not enjoy the roughness of football and thought about quitting but friends convinced him to continue playing.[1] His track speed (40-yard dash in 4.40 seconds and about 10.50 seconds in the 100 meters) was unusual for someone his size (6'1" and 260 lb), and this rare combination of talents led to his selection in the second round of the 1987 NFL Draft by the Kansas City Chiefs.

[gh]

Re: Lawrence Okoye puts athletics on hold

Not that I've ever played/coached the position, but I'm guessing somebody with monster size/strength/speed can relatively quickly be made into a situational pass rusher of quality. So long as they like pain, that is.

[rainy.here]

Re: Lawrence Okoye puts athletics on hold

They referenced good Combine scores, which I couldn't find with a couple minutes searching. Anyone find/see them?

He did not attend the NFL Combine. The NFL holds regional combines, and he said that he attended one of those.

I know - otherwise it would have been easy to find.

[kamikaze7]

Re: Lawrence Okoye puts athletics on hold

Given his physical attributes and the fact that he excelled at rugby and track, he has a very good chance of succeeding.

Christain Okoye ended up being one of the best running backs of the mid 1980s despite having never played football until he was in his 20s

[Blues]

Re: Lawrence Okoye puts athletics on hold

[quote=rainy.here]

They referenced good Combine scores, which I couldn't find with a couple minutes searching. Anyone find/see them?

He did not attend the NFL Combine. The NFL holds regional combines, and he said that he attended one of those.

I know - otherwise it would have been easy to find. [/quote:2as0lpfi]

He's supposed to be participating in the NFL Super Regional Combine this weekend (April 6-7) in Dallas. The Super Regional is by invitation only, and includes athletes who were standouts in the various Regional Combines... NFL.COM and NFL Network are both covering the Super Regional Combine, so maybe more information will be available regarding Okoye's Combine performance in Dallas.

[GDAWG]

Re: Lawrence Okoye puts athletics on hold

The Jets have a Tight End named Hayden Smith who's first real football experience was last year when he was activated from the Jets practice squad.

[Blues]

Re: Lawrence Okoye puts athletics on hold

Atlanta Regional Combine results for Lawrence Okoye, as posted on his twitter page. (There was no bench press at the regional combine.)

https://twitter.com/LawrenceOkoye1/stat ... 92/photo/1

Okoye's Atlanta Regional Combine numbers:
40yd 4.78
Vertical Jump 35 inches
R-short shuttle 4.48
L-short shuttle 4.38
Broad Jump 125 inches
10yd split 1.71
20yd split 2.64

Edit- If you want to see how his marks compare to the defensive ends who were invited to the official NFL Scouting Combine, click the link below, and then click on the position (POS) column header. Results of the athletes who were invited to the official NFL Combine this year will then be grouped by position. Then scroll down to the defensive ends group (DE).

http://nflcombineresults.com/nflcombine ... =&college=

[batonless relay]

Re: Lawrence Okoye puts athletics on hold

Whoever designed the NFL combine results must have been on the consulting committee for the IAAF results site.

Anyway, that is RIDICULOUS for a 6'6, 306lb man. 35" vertical! 4.78 40yd (4.88 the first time!)

[gh]

Re: Lawrence Okoye puts athletics on hold

the big vertical for somebody his height/weight isn't at all ridiculous. Back in the day I trained with no end of throwers who had serious hops. Amazing what a lot of heavy squats do for you in that department.

There was a memorable incident in a hotel in Europe in the early '70s when some touring athletes were wondering about standing under something or other and wondering if anybody could touch it. Rey Brown, who was 6-4 and one of the best high jumpers in the world, couldn't do it. Putter Al Feuerbach, who was 6-1 and somewhere in the 250-275 range at the time, had no trouble.

[Blues]

Re: Lawrence Okoye puts athletics on hold

Obviously he lacks knowledge of the game, but comparing Okoye's drills marks in the regional combine to the marks of the 21 defensive ends who were invited to, and performed at, the 2013 NFL Scouting Combine, his ranking in each event out of the 22 defensive ends would have been:

40 yards - Tied for 8th
Vertical jump - Tied for 3rd
Broad Jump - 3rd
Short Shuttle - 8th (using the average of his right and left shuttle times)

(Assuming that I calculated correctly)

It'll be interesting to see how many bench press reps (225 lbs) he'll be able to do...