Michigan football at NFL Draft Scouting Combine: Saturday live blog, updates
Two Michigan Wolverines football players are set to go through measurements, testing and on-field drills Saturday afternoon and evening at the 2023 NFL Draft Scouting Combine in Indianapolis. Wide receiver Ronnie Bell and tight end Luke Schoonmaker will look to impress scouts and boost their draft stock today.
Bell and Schoonmaker are seen as mid-to-late-round picks and are looking to bump up their draft stock during the NFL Combine.
Saturday’s on-field coverage of the combine is televised on NFL Network from 3-8 p.m. ET.
More Michigan players will go through drills throughout the next few days. Here’s the full schedule
- March 2 (3 p.m. to 8 p.m. ET): DL (Mike Morris, Mazi Smith), LB
- March 3 (3 p.m. to 8 p.m. ET): DB (DJ Turner), PK/ST (Jake Moody, Brad Robbins)
- March 4 (1 p.m. to 8 p.m. ET): QB, WR (Ronnie Bell), TE (Luke Schoonmaker)
- March 5 (1 p.m. to 7 p.m. ET): OL (Ryan Hayes, Olusegun Oluwatimi), RB
This live blog will have the latest on how they all do in their on-field drills, what analysts say about them and more. Follow along below for real-time updates on Michigan players at the combine.
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Live updates: Michigan at NFL Draft Scouting Combine
8:16 p.m. – “Schoony’s” official 40-yard time came in after the broadcast ended, confirming a 4.63 40-yard dash time.
6:39 p.m. – Schoonmaker’s first unofficial 40-yard dash time was 4.65, followed by a 4.63 on his second attempt.
Kent Lee Platte’s RAS metric has Schoonmaker at a 9.66/10, making him one of the most athleticly impressive tight ends at the combine.
6:15 p.m. – Schoonmaker got his day going with a vertical leap of 33.5 inches and broad jumped 10 feet, 7 inches.
5:37 p.m. – Bell’s day continued with a 10-yard split of 1.52, 19th among players at his position.
3:27 p.m. – The official 40-yard dash times are in with Bell recording a 4.54 on the day.
3:06 p.m. – Bell had a nice one-handed grab during throwing drills, which drew the attention of the draftniks watching.
2:23 p.m. – Could Bell be a fit with the hometown Detroit Lions? Pride of Detroit’s Erik Schlitt thinks it is something to keep an eye on.
“We all know the Lions tend to prefer WRs who are fast, but from a measurable standpoint, they tend to grab players who jump over 37″ in Vertical AND 10’4″ in broad. 2 guys to watch in 1st WR group, that hit the jumps threshold,” he tweeted.
1:49 p.m. – Bell’s second unofficial attempt was preempted by a commercial break, but he ran an unofficial 4.57 on his retry.
1:42 p.m. – Earlier in the day, Bell recorded a vertical jump of 38.5 inches and broad jumped 10-feet.
1:23 p.m. – Bell’s first unofficial 40-yard dash time is in at 4.54 seconds after stumbling out of the gate. “Toughness is one of the biggest takeaways when you watch his tape,” NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah said.
1:10 p.m. – The day starts out in Indianapolis with quarterbacks running the 40-yard dash.
12:35 p.m. – Just over 20 minutes after Bell measured in, tight end Luke Schoonmaker’s measurements were made official.
| Player | Height | Weight | Arm Length | Hand Size |
| Luke Schoonmaker | 6’5″ | 251 pounds | 32 7/8ths inches | 9 inches |
Here’s what The Draft Network says about Scoonmaker coming into the combine:
Schoonmaker’s ceiling is more than likely limited due to his age. He will be a 25-year-old rookie tight end in 2023. I project him as a TE2 or 3 for a run-oriented offense. His ability to block and work underneath coverages will provide opportunities for success in 12-personnel packages. He can line up as an H-back in pistol sets and motion into the slot. I believe he will be most effective in an offense with vertical receivers to free up space in the short and intermediate regions of the field.
12:14 p.m. – Measurements are in for Michigan wideout Ronnie Bell as the Saturday combine work gets underway.
| Player | Height | Weight | Arm Length | Hand Size |
| Ronnie Bell | 6′ | 191 pounds | 31 inches | 9.5 inches |
NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein weighs in on Bell’s skillset:
True Michigan Man, displaying the competitive spirit and work ethic expected inside the program. Bell made it back in 2022 after sustaining an ACL tear in 2021, but he still looked a little passive getting in and out of breaks at times. His surprisingly low contested catch total is a bit deceiving, as the tape shows some incredible near-catches at challenging angles. So, his ball skills are a strength. He can catch what is thrown to him but might need to do it against zone or with help from scheme, as he potentially lacks the separation traits to get open consistently on the next level.
