Notre Dame football announces date for Pro Day
On March 21, the eyes of the NFL world will turn to South Bend to see a projected top-10 pick in offensive tackle Joe Alt, among others, go through his Pro Day. Notre Dame football announced it will hold the annual event on that date.
The Pro Day will take place in the Irish Athletic Center and stream on Peacock. Further details, such as start time and the broadcast team, will be available at a later date.
At Notre Dame’s Pro Day, its NFL Draft hopefuls will go through drills such as the bench press, 40-yard dash, vertical jump, broad jump, three-cone drill and shuttle drill in front of scouts and executives from all 32 teams. The Irish will also put their former players through position-specific drills as they hope to impress representatives from the next level.
Eight Notre Dame players will have the chance to go through drills and meet with teams from Feb. 26 to March 4 at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis: Quarterback Sam Hartman, running back Audric Estimé, offensive tackles Alt and Blake Fisher, defensive end Javontae Jean-Baptiste, linebackers JD Bertrand and Marist Liufau and cornerback Cam Hart.
Hartman, Jean-Baptiste, Bertrand, Liufau and Hart also performed at the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Ala. last month.
Five Notre Dame players whose eligibility expired did not receive Combine invites: nickel back Thomas Harper, safety DJ Brown, wide receiver Matt Salerno, kicker Spencer Shrader and long snapper Michael Vinson.
It’s uncommon but not impossible for a player who does not make the list of 321 Combine invitees to get drafted. The Pro Day will be especially important for those five to impress NFL teams if they hope to latch onto a training camp roster.
Harper and Brown were starters on a very good Notre Dame defense, and they should receive opportunities as undrafted free agents. Long snappers rarely get drafted, but Vinson developed a reputation as one of the best in college football.
Shrader’s strong leg should earn him a look or two from scouts, despite inconsistent accuracy in the first half of the 2023 season. Salerno was a backup who missed most of his final season due to injury and faces an uphill battle for NFL attention, but stranger things have happened.
Notre Dame’s highest-drafted player will be Alt, who could be the first offensive tackle off the board. Estimé has a good chance to go on Day 2 and should be an early-Day 3 pick at minimum. Fisher, Hart and Liufau are possible Day 2 picks as well, while Bertrand, Jean-Baptiste and Hartman should be selected at some point on Day 3.
