Pierre Strong Jr., Michael Griffin turn heads at South Dakota State football Pro Day
BROOKINGS – Ever since Pierre Strong ran a 4.37 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine, which tied for the fastest time among all running backs at the event, the South Dakota State running back has found himself becoming more and more of a household name as this year’s NFL Draft nears.
“It changed my life,” the Little Rock, Ark., native said of his 40-time.
On Wednesday, Strong was back in Jackrabbit blue and yellow, performing at South Dakota State’s annual Pro Day, where he was joined by a dozen of his Jackrabbit teammates and three others area Division II hopefuls.
Unlike in past years, Pro Day was limited to players whom at least one NFL team had expressed an interest in scouting. All but a handful of NFL teams had a scout in attendance Wednesday, and while Strong was the main attraction, a handful of other Jackrabbits performed well enough to have optimism they’re on the radar of NFL teams and scouts.
More: Three things to watch as South Dakota State begins spring football
Players were officially measured and weighed (without shoes) and could test in the 40-yard dash, cone drill, bench press, broad jump and vertical jump, as well as perform in drills relative to their position.
How Pierre Strong showed off after an impressive Combine
Strong didn’t run the 40. Why would he after clocking such an eye-popping time at the Combine? He did take part in most everything else, and was pleased with the results. He did 16 reps of 225 pounds on the bench, reached 38 inches with his vertical leap, showed impressive burst and agility in running back drills and displayed wideout-quality hands in passing drills.
“I’m happy,” Strong said moments after finishing his last event, sweat dripping from every inch of his shirtless body. “I think I did wonderful. I got to show off my hands, ability to move, my agility, all of that. I ran that 40-time, but I came out today to show what else I can do - run side to side, catch the ball. I just knew I had to complement (the 40 time), and I increased my vertical by two. I feel like I had a really productive day.”
Safety Michael Griffin jumps past the measuring tool
He wasn’t the only one. Jackrabbit safety Michael Griffin turned heads with an impressive performance. The 6-foot, 215-pound safety provided the first true ‘wow’ moment of the morning with a vertical leap that was so high it exceeded the limits of the measuring tool. When they extended the marker so Griffin could jump again, he reached a whopping 43.5 inches, drawing hoots and hollers from the players and coaches in attendance. His leap would have been the top jump at this year's NFL Combine and among the top 10 in Combine history.
Later, Griffin ran a sub-4.5 40-yard dash (no official times were posted, every scout had their own stopwatch), and also impressed in the other skills.
“I feel really good,” said Griffin, who began his college career at Southwest Minnesota State before starting for three seasons with the Jacks. “A lot of training went into this. I’ve been jumping my whole life and I’ve always been pretty springy, so I figured I could get pretty high. I really wanted to prove today that at my size I can run well and be agile, loose hips, just show what I can do. Hopefully, I turned some heads and drew some interest.”
More: 3 new hires complete South Dakota State football’s coaching staff
SDSU's Don Gardner shows off 40-yard dash, vertical
One of Griffin’s partners in the secondary, cornerback Don Gardner, also had a solid day.
At least one of the scouts timing his 40-yard dash timed him around 4.4, and he also showed a 36-inch vertical. Gardner was one of the Missouri Valley Football Conference’s top cover corners through most of his career, but missed much of his senior season with a broken arm.
That made his Pro Day performance important, as he tries to work his way back to the best version of himself.
“To be honest with you, it’s hard to know how well you do until you see the (official) numbers,” Gardner said. “From what I do know I feel like I was pretty solid. I put in a lot of training to work my way back and today was the day to find out if it paid off and I think it did. Now it’s back to work. I believe I’m an NFL player, but we’ll put it in God’s hands and go from there. I’m excited to see where it takes me.”
More: 3 things to watch in South Dakota's spring football season
Other South Dakota State Pro Day highlights
Offensive tackle Aron Johnson performed 26 reps on the bench, while defensive end Tolu Ogunrinde looked slimmed down and quick. He ran a 40 in the 4.7 range.
Chris Oladokun was the only quarterback on hand, and the 24-year-old graduate senior showed the same combination of passing skills and athleticism that enabled him to throw for 3,000 yards and 25 touchdowns in leading the Jacks to 11 wins in his one year as a starter.
Oladokun showed tremendous zip on his short throws and solid accuracy in his midrange to deep throws. SDSU quarterbacks coach Zach Lujan was pleased with the arm talent his pupil displayed, and added that the intangibles Oladokun shows as a leader, teammate and field general will make him attractive to NFL teams as a low-risk, high-reward option.
Others to work out were linebacker Logan Backhaus, defensive tackles Thomas Stacker and Xavier Ward, offensive linemen Wes Genant and Eagan Lickiss (who topped the bench press on the day with 27 reps) and special teamers Cole Frahm (kicker) and Bradey Sorenson (long snapper). Joining them from outside the program were Augustana defensive tackle Logan Swanson, Northern State wideout Vance Barnes and Chadron State wideout Cole Thurness.
Jackrabbit great Zach Zenner makes a Pro Day appearance
Also in attendance was Jackrabbit great Zach Zenner. SDSU’s second all-time leading rusher, Zenner had a five-year career in the NFL that ended after the 2019 season, and has now switched careers to player agent. He represents SDSU’s Sorenson.
Zenner marveled at the progress of the program since his playing days, pointing out that there were all of five teams at his Pro Day back in 2015. Now most of the NFL makes the trip to Brookings each year. Still, Zenner said that as exciting and nerve-wracking as Pro Day can be, it’s what they did as college players that carries the most weight, and Pro Day testing and measurables are icing on that cake.
That’s good news for Strong and several of the others on hand, who left a mark as Jackrabbits.
Strong feels like a lock to be drafted at some point. Other Rabbits in the past have thought that would be the case, too, only to be disappointed, but Strong’s Combine performance and the way he backed it up on Wednesday have many analysts viewing him as a potential early-mid round pick, and one of the top running backs available.
“I’ve heard third or fourth round but I don’t let that go to my head,” Strong said. “I’m getting back to work. Keep working until draft time and see where I end up. I know this, I’ll be grateful to go anywhere.”
This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: South Dakota State Pro Day: Pierre Strong continues to turn heads
