It’s March and the Big Blue Nation’s eyes are all on the basketball team, and deservedly so. However, the football team is coming off one of the best seasons in UK football history with the help of twelve potential NFL draft picks.

Last Friday, a total of sixteen former Cats participated in UK’s 2019 Pro Day. The Pro Day was primarily for those that were either not invited or could not participate in the NFL Draft Combine. Josh Allen, Benny Snell, and the other six combine participants were there to support teammates.

While that was the plan, NFL Teams were still drooling over Josh Allen. Allen said that even though he did no performance drills, scouts repeatedly pulled him aside to have informal conversations and to get a better feel of Josh Allen the person and the football player. I mean how could you not draft that beast #1? Just look at his hands and strength

Before the season started, NFL sources talked about how this Kentucky team had just as much NFL talent as any team in the country and that’s still the case as all 32 NFL teams were well represented, including some big names such as Oakland Raiders GM Mike Mayock and Los Angeles Rams GM Les Snead.

With Allen and Snell sitting out, the rest of the Cats shined.

CJ Conrad

For CJ Conrad, UK’s Pro Day was about more than just putting up numbers. It was about just being able to get back on the field after concerns that his football career might be over.

Conrad received a combine invite but before he was able to participate in any drills, Conrad was ruled out after a medical examination found what was thought to be a heart issue. Last Monday, Conrad flew to Boston for a second opinion and got the great news that he would be able to continue to pursue his NFL dreams.

After not being able to work out for nearly three weeks, Conrad chose to not go through the entire “underwear olympic” regimen and instead just performed catching drills. Conrad was okay with that saying, “It really tested me a lot, but just to be out here with my teammates and all that, it’s meant everything.”

Conrad will continue to prepare for the NFL Draft in April and will hold another Pro Day on April 8th, where he will be joined by Mike Edwards who sat out due to a hand injury.

Chris Westry

Westry was the only eligible UK defensive back not invited to the Combine and with his performance on Friday, they might have regretted that decision.

Westry measured at 6-foot-4, posted a 38-inch vertical, and ran unofficial 4.31-second and 4.37-second 40-yard dashes. For comparison, Westry’s forty time would’ve been second among all defensive backs at the Combine and was as fast or faster than every wide receiver.

The performance wasn’t a surprise to Mark Stoops saying, “Chris Westry ran a great time, of course he was the only DB not invited to the Combine, and he lights it up here today”

Here is a clip from the Cats going nuts when Westry recorded his 38-inch vertical.

George Asafo-Adjei

Offensive tackle, George Asafo-Adjei undoubtedly had the best day of all the Cats participating on Friday and made himself some serious $$$.

Asafo-Adjei had 34 bench press reps, which would have tied him for second place among all offensive linemen at the NFL Combine. Asafo-Adjei’s 30″ vertical leap would have placed him in the top ten at the combine. Most remarkably he was able to do something only four offensive linemen did at the combine, breaking the five-second mark in the 40-yard dash with a 4.93-second mark.

Here is a table of all the results from Friday’s Pro Day.