Buckeyes DT Mike Hall won't work out at NFL Scouting Combine

INDIANAPOLIS — Former Ohio State defensive tackle Mike Hall is gaining major buzz as one of the potential rising stars of the NFL Draft process.

That process, however, is getting put on pause for the weekend. Hall won’t work out at the NFL Scouting Combine this week after tweaking a hamstring in the pre-combine process, he announced during a media interview on Wednesday afternoon here in Indianapolis.

“I won’t be doing anything at the combine,” he said. “I tweaked my hamstring a couple of days before so I won’t be doing anything. But I will be doing everything at Pro Day on March 20th.”

Hall is one of eight Ohio State players who were invited to the NFL Combine, and he’s the second to publicly announce that he won’t be working out. Buckeyes superstar wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. also announced his intentions to sit out of combine workouts — because he’s going to be a top draft selection whether he does the combine drills or not.

For Hall, his Pro Day at Ohio State next month will now be even more important for the three-year Buckeyes player. He has proven so far during the pre-draft assessment that he should be steadily climbing draft boards.

Assessing Mike Hall’s NFL Draft stock

The Ohio State standout junior even earned high praise from one of the most respected draft analysts in that business, Matt Miller. The ESPN expert even went as far as delivering a lofty comparison that won’t be taken lightly around NFL Draft circles.

“If you squinted during practices this week and looked at No. 51 for the National team, you might have had flashbacks to when Aaron Donald was at the Senior Bowl in 2014,” Miller said during the Senior Bowl. “Hall is a smaller defensive tackle at 6-foot-2 and 280 pounds, but his burst off the line is stunning. He routinely beat blockers off the ball and was a blur through the gaps. Hall’s lack of size will hold him back on certain team boards, but as a penetrator, he had no peer at the Senior Bowl. I have a Round 3 grade on him, but that will vary for teams that value a gap-splitting pass-rusher (20 pressures in 2023) who may have to leave the field on running downs.”

Hall seems to be landing consistently in the second and third round of mock drafts. The Athletic’s Nick Bumgardner slotted Hall at No. 69 overall — in the third round. But the latest mock draft from CBS Sports showed Hall landing at No. 49 overall to the home-state Cincinnati Bengals, showing Hall’s quick rise up draft boards and rankings.