With bench press behind him, Notre Dame's Troy Pride Jr, looks to get up to speed
Sunday is the day Troy Pride has been waiting for all week — maybe even a lifetime.
The Notre Dame cornerback gets to put his best foot forward, in terms of physical testing at the NFL Scouting Combine, in the 40-yard dash.
Saturday, he and Irish safeties performed in the bench press. Pride put up 13 reps at 225 pounds, good for a tie for 13th-best among the 23 cornerbacks who participated.
Gilman managed 17 (tied for 11th) and Elliott 15 (tied for 13th) among the 18 safeties who took part.
They’re three of nine Irish players and 337 overall invited to the NFL Draft’s annual mass audition in Indianapolis.
The combine closes Sunday with the final position groups — safeties and corners — performing in the 40, the vertical jump, standing broad jump, three-cone drill and 20-yard shuttle. Players will also take part in on-field position-specific drills.
Pride, a former All-Atlantic Coast Conference sprinter for the Irish track team, said he expects to have one of the fastest 40 times in the combine field.
So far it’s Alabama wide receiver Henry Ruggs III, and everyone else.
Ruggs ran a 4.27 earlier in the week. The next closest has been Southern Mississippi wide receiver Quez Watkins (4.35).
ND teammate Chase Claypool turned in a 4.42 on Thursday. That was the seventh-fastest among the 45 wide receivers and ninth-fastest so far among players from all positions.
Pride said on ND Insider’s Pod of Gold podcast that he ran in the 4.2s last spring during team testing.
