INDIANAPOLIS — The 2022 NFL Scouting Combine is underway in Indianapolis, marking the next step for college football players to impress teams ahead of the 2022 NFL Draft (April 28-30).
It's also a time for NFL front offices to negotiate deals (ahead of the official start of the league year on March 16) and speak to the media about the upcoming season.
Here's a look at the Iowa Hawkeyes, Iowa State Cyclones and Northern Iowa Panthers who will be running, throwing and jumping this week.
On-field drills are Thursday through Sunday at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
Click here to view a full list of 2022 NFL Scouting Combine athletes. This story will be updated with measurables and highlights throughout the week.
Friday Notes
- UNI offensive lineman Trevor Penning ran the 40-yard dash in 4.91 seconds, tallied a 28" vertical and 9'3" broad jump (And if you haven't watched his Senior Bowl highlights ... go ahead and do that now.)
- Tyler Linderbaum (Iowa, center) official combine measurements: 6'2", 296 pounds with 31 1/8" arms and 10" hands
- Iowa State running back Breece Hall runs the 40-yard dash in 4.39 seconds. He measures in at 5'11", 217 pounds with 31 1/4" arms and 9 3'4" hands.
Thursday notes
- UNI wide receiver Isaiah Weston tied for second in his position group in the broad jump (11'3"), led WRs in bench press (20 reps, though only three receivers participated) and had the second-highest vertical among receivers (40"). He also ran a 4.42 second 40-yard dash.
- Iowa State QB Brock Purdy, along with TEs Charlie Kolar and Chase Allen, saw the field with throwing/catching reps. Purdy ran a 4.84 40-yard dash.
- Iowa center Tyler Linderbaum appeared for his media Q&A time but will not participate in drills due to a foot injury.
Iowa
- Junior
- 6'1", 205 lbs
- 40-Yard Dash: 4.43 seconds
- Vertical Jump: 36.5"
- Broad Jump: 10'3"
- 3-Cone Drill: 7.01 seconds
- 20-Yard Shuttle: 4.24 seconds
In an interview last month with The Draft Network, Belton said:
"...I definitely entered the season with a greater emphasis on creating interceptions and taking the ball away in general. For me to be able to get those five interceptions, I felt like I helped the team tremendously. I continued to get better. I studied a lot of film throughout the season. I feel like each year I played, going from my freshman year to sophomore year, and then sophomore year to junior year, I consistently grew as a player."
- Junior
- 5'9", 197 lbs
- 29 1/2" Arms
- 9" Hands
- 40-Yard Dash: 4.42 seconds
- Vertical Jump: 36.5"
- Broad Jump: 10'3"
- Redshirt Junior
- 6'2", 296 lbs
- 31 1/8" Arms
- 10" Hands
NOTE: Linderbaum will not participate in on-field drills this week, according to Stacey Dales with the NFL Network.
"Top Center prospect Tyler Linderbaum said he won’t be participating in drills at the combine due to a mid foot sprain suffered in the team’s bowl game," she tweeted. "Told me he’s feeling good, just not healthy enough to go at the combine, but is shooting for Iowa’s pro day."
The All-American Hawkeye is seen as a lock to be a first-round pick, as has been the case most of this past season. It will be interesting to see who ends up going higher: him or Trevor Penning of UNI (more on Penning below).
Last year, he touted the highest run blocking grade in the Big Ten since 2017, according to Pro Football Focus.
Iowa State
- Redshirt Senior
- 6'6", 251 lbs
- 34 1/8" Arms
- 9 5/8" Hands
- Vertical Jump: 33.5"
- Broad Jump: 9'9"
- 3-Cone Drill: 7.03 seconds
- 20-Yard Shuttle: 4.43 seconds
"I grew up an Iowa State fan, my old man was a coach there. And I really wanted to play there, and I got so fortunate that this guy named Matt Campbell got hired as the head coach the year I was coming out of [high school]. It was probably one of the best things that ever happened to me. I got a great relationship with Coach and I'm gonna miss being on the sidelines with him and just miss being around him, seeing him around every day."
- Junior
- 5'1", 217 lbs
- 31 1/4" Arms
- 9 3/4" Hands
- 40-Yard Dash: 4.39 seconds
- Vertical Jump: 40"
- Broad Jump: 10'6
Following Hall's on-field drills Friday, ESPN's Jordan Reid called him an "RB1 candidate."
Hall leads both the ESPN and NFL.com running back position rankings for the draft this year. While it is a safer bet to see his name called in the second or third rounds, it would not be completely surprising if a team picked the All-American in the first round.
"I feel like over the last two years, no running back has been able to do what I've been able to do ... I really respect those other guys' games, they're really great. Kenneth [Walker III] he's great, Isaiah [Spiller] I really love watching him ... I just feel like I'm just the best running back in the draft."
Hall's confidence also grabbed the attention of NFL.com, who included it in their combine writeup on the running back.
- Redshirt Senior
- 6'6 1/2", 252 lbs
- 34 1/2" Arms
- 10" Hands
- Senior
- 6'1", 212 lbs
- 29" Arms
- 9 1/4" Hands
- 40-Yard Dash: 4.84 seconds
- Vertical Jump: 27"
- 3-Cone Drill: 7.21 seconds
- 20-Yard Shuttle: 4.45 seconds
"We built something there for sure. Coach Campbell obviously is the cornerstone of that. They're not done. We passed on the baton and hopefully they can go and run and do bigger and better things. But I think our class did do something there for sure. I'm proud of them."
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- Senior
- 6'4", 245 lbs
- 33 1/4" Arms
- 10 1/8" Hands
- Vertical Jump: 34"
- Broad Jump: 10'1"
- Redshirt Senior
- 6'6" , 316 lbs
- 35 1/8" Arms
- 10 1/8" Arms
- Vertical Jump: 33"
- Broad Jump: 8'11"
Northern Iowa
- Redshirt Senior
- 6'7", 325 lbs
- 34 1/4" Arms
- 10 1/8" Hands
- 40-Yard Dash: 4.89"
- Vertical Jump: 28"
- Broad Jump: 9'3"
- 3-Cone Drill: 7.25 seconds
- 20-Yard Shuttle: 4.62 seconds
It's worth noting: The Clear Lake native likes to watch horror films the night before games. Spooky.
Penning may be one of the fastest risers in the draft, now widely-mocked to be a first-round pick. He had a standout Senior Bowl as well.
At the combine Thursday, Penning named Taylor Lewan and Lane Johnson as two of his favorite NFL offensive linemen.
"I really had something to prove, really, I wanted to show that FCS football is the real deal and you can come out of anywhere," Penning told CBS Sports HQ about the Senior Bowl. "Going into that week I wanted to prove that all these big-time schools really screwed up and that's really what I came in doing. I just wanted to show I belonged."
- Redshirt Senior
- 6'3 1/2", 214 lbs
- 32 1/2" Arms
- 9 1/2" Hands
- Bench Press Reps: 20
- 40-Yard Dash: 4.42 seconds
- Vertical Jump: 40"
- Broad Jump: 11'3"
