‘It doesn’t happen overnight’: Several Sun Devils snubbed by NFL Combine
The NFL Scouting Combine will allow 329 invitees to boost their draft stock through on-field workouts and 1-on-1 interviews with coaches and executives beginning on Feb. 27.
Given that Arizona State’s 11-win rocketship season in coach Kenny Dillingham’s second year was fueled in part by several draft-eligible players, the event seemed primed to present a perfect opportunity for a number of Sun Devils to showcase their talents ahead of the NFL Draft’s start on Apri 24.
Instead, despite rising as high as seventh in the final AP poll of the season after its College Football Playoff berth, ASU’s fight for national recognition is far from over as illustrated by the invitation of just one of its players: Cam Skattebo, whose inclusion was undeniable.
Skattebo’s senior season included an NCAA second-best 2,316 yards from scrimmage and a fifth-place finish in Heisman voting, capturing the attention of national draft analysts and NFL scouts alike, not to mention many other football fans across the country.
“I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a more aggressive runner who just seeks out contact and can absorb contact,” Daniel Jeremiah of NFL Network said. “He is such a fun player to watch, whoever gets him is gonna have one of the most aggressive and physical runners that we’ve seen in the last few years.”
Skattebo’s meteoric rise to national prominence mirrors the ascension of the ASU program over the last 12 months. Despite Skattebo’s national attention, other draft-eligible members of the Big 12 champions seemingly have yet to earn the same recognition despite standout seasons for the Sun Devils.
Center Leif Fautanu was a big part of Skattebo’s historic season, tossing aside defensive linemen and paving the way for Skattebo throughout the campaign en route to a first-team All-Big 12 selection. Yet, the conference-wide recognition was not enough to land Fautanu an invitation to the combine.
At 6-foot-2 and 315 pounds, Fautanu moves well for his size and could have utilized the combine to showcase the speed, agility and intelligence that led to his breakout season.
Despite eight Big 12 defensive backs receiving combine invites, nickel back and safety Shamari Simmons was not among them. The 6-foot-0, 195-pound Simmons had 146 tackles across 26 games in his two ASU seasons. Simmons showcased a nose for the ball in leading the Big 12 with four forced fumbles including a safety-causing hit on Texas running back Quintrevion Wisner in the Peach Bowl that served as a tipping point in ASU’s 16-point second-half comeback.
After not being invited to Mobile, Ala., for the Senior Bowl in January, Simmons participated in the East-West Shrine Bowl, making a handful of standout plays, including a diving interception in practice.
“It’s unfortunate that guys like Leif, specifically, and Shamari, specifically, who were kind of two borderline guys aren’t getting invited,” Dillingham said. “Both those guys are NFL-caliber players or players that have a really good chance to make teams and excel.”
Though ASU’s lack of NFL combine invites beyond Skattebo may be frustrating for Sun Devil fans and coaches, it served as a reminder that ASU is still new to national dialogue under Dillingham. Still, should the Sun Devils maintain success as Dillingham has them positioned to do, the recognition will come sooner rather than later, particularly on a team set to return two-thirds of its starters, including several others who received all-conference recognition.
” Dillingham said. “There’s a reason some teams get more people in it. It’s because they’ve won for longer. If we go and have a good year again, you will never have that happen again where somebody gets snubbed from Arizona State.”
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