It would be foolhardy, Matt Link knows, to predict a recruiting class’ future football contributions by its first-day performance in the weight room.
Still, Link a Kansas University assistant director of strength and conditioning couldn’t help but be a little impressed by the results Monday, when KU’s football newcomers were put through the paces of a limited battery of tests.
“It’s hard for me, because I really try to take into consideration where they’re going to be instead of where they’re at, but across the board, it’s a pretty talented class with good athletic ability.”
– Matt Link, Assistant Driector of Strength & Conditioning
“It’s hard for me, because I really try to take into consideration where they’re going to be instead of where they’re at,” Link said. “But across the board, it’s a pretty talented class with good athletic ability. And when we ran the conditioning tests, most of the guys were in good shape. The ones who weren’t in good shape just gutted it. That’s a great sign for them as a class. When guys were struggling, other guys were there encouraging them.”
While Link isn’t about to make too much of the first-day numbers, he said a couple of newcomers stood out.
Perhaps the most obvious standout was juco cornerback Jamarei Bryant, who had a 37-inch vertical leap and a 10 foot, 41/2-inch broad jump.
“That’s a heck of a frickin’ jump,” Link said. “Jamarei’s got some limitless potential. He’ll benefit from being in the program and he’ll benefit from the coaching on the field. There obviously are some guys who put up some great numbers who couldn’t translate that onto the field, but Jamarei could be one of those special guys.”
Among the other highlights Monday were:
Freshman defensive back Leo Bookman recorded a 341/2-inch vertical jump, and fellow frosh wideout J.T. Thompson had a 33-incher. Juco linebacker De’Nard Whitfield also jumped 33 inches, and freshman defensive back Santana Lane went 32 inches.
“Beside Jamarei, nobody blew the test away, but across the board we had good numbers,” Link said. “Jason Farley was 291/2 inches, and he’s a walk-on tight end.
Lane had a 10 foot, 21/2-inch broad jump. Freshman QB Mario Kinsey and freshman cornerback John McCoy each jumped 9-11, while Bookman jumped 9-101/2. Whitfield went 9-91/2, and running back Austine Nwabuisi jumped 9-81/2.
“Those are all pretty good jumps,” Link said. “The best I’ve ever seen was 11 feet, and that was a track guy who did jumps and also played football. To see Whitfield, a guy who’s working with the defensive line, go 9-91/2 he’s a heck of an explosive guy. He’s got some incredible athleticism. And then we had guys like (juco) Marlon Dale at 8-2. That’s not phenomenal, but he weighed in at 320 pounds. He’s a big boy. That’s a good jump, like (defensive line transfer) Brandon Lacy’s 9-3. That’s a good jump for a guy who’s 240.”
Thompson had the day’s best pro-agility time of 4.15 seconds. Juco wideout Roger Ross was right behind at 4.18, while freshman running back Tony Stubbs was clocked in 4.20 seconds.
“No one ran a really great shuttle by our standards, but there’s definitely a learning curve associated with it,” Link said. “But, still, some guys ran pretty good. Like Mario Kinsey’s 4.21. For an average quarterback, that’s a good time. He’s going to push that 4-second barrier. He’s definitely some athleticism.”
That won’t necessarily translate into on-field performance, but Link can’t help but be happy with the tools he’s been given.
“There are always guys you think will be great because of their numbers that don’t translate on the field, and you always hear about the guy who’s a little too slow but who’s always around the ball,” Link said. “But you can tell guys like Jamarei and Ervin (Holloman) and De’Nard are in position to contribute immediate.
“We didn’t do strength testing, or Ervin would have been up there with what we’ve seen him do over the summer. For some of those younger guys, it’s hard for them to contribute immediate. But across the board, they should be in the mix soon. From what I’ve seen, they’re a pretty athletic group.”
They’ll practice together for the first time today. The first full-squad workout is Friday.
