Dozen Ducks Participate In Pro Day

EUGENE, Ore. — Chase Cota had his dad and fellow Oregon football program alum watching from the sideline. Alex Forsyth had his brothers on the UO offensive line competing next to him. Christian Gonzalez had an NFL veteran brother-in-law just a phone call away.

Those three and nine other Ducks participated Tuesday in their Pro Day workout for NFL scouts. As those dozen Ducks took that critical step toward their dreams of playing professional football, none was alone — not only did they have various friends and family on hand, but their now former UO coaches and teammates packed the Moshofsky Center to take in the event.

Gonzalez, who led the UO defense with four interceptions in 2022, is the highest profile prospect from Oregon in this year's draft, projected by some analysts as a top-10 pick. Gonzalez has been able to lean on his brother-in-law, NFL quarterback David Blough, as he prepares for the draft.

This year's draft will be held April 27-29. Gonzalez has the chance to give Oregon a top-10 pick in four straight years, unprecedented in program history.

"It's definitely surreal — that's the one word I always use to describe how I feel right now," Gonzalez said. "Sometimes it's like it's just a dream. It's a dream come true to be able to do this."

Gonzalez was one of six Ducks invited to this year's NFL Scouting Combine, earlier this month in Indianapolis. Having made an impression there, Gonzalez didn't participate in the regimen of drills conducted Tuesday, such as the 40-yard dash; linebacker Noah Sewell made the same decision. But both players went through position-specific drills such as defending pass routes for the NFL scouting personnel in attendance Tuesday.

"I wanted to come out and show it wasn't just a one time thing," Gonzalez said. "You know, it's what I do."

Two other combine participants for the Ducks, Forsyth and fellow offensive lineman T.J. Bass, also sat out timing drills Tuesday but did position work. The other two UO combine participants, offensive lineman Malaesala Aumavae-Laulu and edge defender DJ Johnson, did select drills and also position work.

"I wanted to show I could bend, move around a little bit, run fast, have a nice burst," Johnson said. "Getting in front of the guys, letting them see me, work me out a little bit. So I feel like we got that done today."

Forsyth had a hamstring issue crop up before position drills at the combine, and so skipped them in Indianapolis. He rectified that Tuesday, going through offensive line drills with three guys he played countless reps with for the Ducks the last few years, in Bass, Aumavae-Laulu and Ryan Walk.

"It's the culmination of all of our college careers, officially kind of coming to an end today," Forsyth said. "So I'm excited. I'm really blessed to have all of them in my life, and for us to be able to compete and push each other."

Forsyth, a second-team all-American as a senior, didn't think sitting out timing drills Tuesday would impact his draft stock.

"I'm think I'm gonna rely mostly on the film that I put on in the 2022 season, and the interviews," Forsyth said, adding with a chuckle, "I don't think I've ever been someone that's been good at, you know, running and jumping. But I can play football. So I'm confident in that."

With personnel from nearly every NFL team on hand Tuesday, not only did the combine participants have a chance to improve their stock, but a half-dozen other Ducks had a chance to catch the scouts' collective eye. Walk showed off his power with 28 bench press reps, while also running the 40 in 5.1 seconds and impressing in the vertical and broad jumps as well.

Defensive lineman Jordon Riley, safety Bennett Williams, receiver Chase Cota, punter Adam Berry and long snapper Karsten Battles also took the opportunity to try and impress scouts.

Cota ran a 4.5 40 and had the best marks of the day in both the vertical jump (37.5 inches) and the broad jump (10 feet, 6 inches), before catching passes from returning UO quarterback Bo Nix.

Looking on from the sideline was Cota's father, Chad, the former Oregon defensive back who went on to play several years in the NFL.

"From the offseason training now leading up to Pro Day, him going through that and doing it all, and understanding what the interviews will be like, moving to a new city, what they'll expect out of you, he's just the most helpful hand possible," Chase Cota said. "It's amazing that I have that resource, for sure."