March 15, 2013

Corvallis, Ore. -

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The NFL descended on Corvallis Friday; at least NFL scouts did for the annual Pro Day where senior hopefuls who weren't invited to the NFL Combine in February worked out. Almost every NFL team had a representative on campus, including the Cardinals, Ravens, Bills, Bears, Browns, Broncos, Packers, Texans, Colts, Jaguars, Chiefs, Vikings, Patriots, Giants, Jets, Raiders, Eagles, Steelers, 49ers, Buccaneers, Titans, Chargers, Seahawks and Redskins. The CFL's B.C. Lions had a rep as well. 

Most of the attention has been on receiver Markus Wheaton and cornerback Jordan Poyer, and with good reason -- neither participated in most drills after showcasing their abilities at the Combine. Both are expected to be drafted in the early rounds of April's Draft, per most experts, after record setting careers for the Beavers.

Today, for the most part, belonged to players who were trying to impress scouts in hopes of a late round draft selection or an invitation to a training camp via free agency. While Wheaton and Poyer were involved in some drills and tests, it was mostly a day for Colin Kelly, Rusty Fernando, Castro Masaniai, Andrew Seumalo, Feti Unga, Anthony Watkins, Brian Watkins and Keynan Parker. Brian Watkins may have the best day of all the Beavers showcasing months of hard offseason training.

The Athletics video team was right in the thick of things and produced the following video with interviews with Wheaton and Poyer, who will add to the 21 current Beavers in the NFL.  Three current NFL Beavers were among the approximately 300 spectators, current players and family - Johnny Hekker (Rams), James Dockery (Panthers) and Brandon Hardin (Bears).

A couple of stories from today to check out -- Lindsay Schnell's take on the day from The Oregonian and Cliff Kirkpatrick's recap from the Corvallis Gazette-Times.

Oregon State returns to the practice field April 1 for the start of spring drills in preparation for the 2013 season. The Beavers open the season Aug. 31 at home against Football Championship Series power Eastern Washington at Reser Stadium and also hosts Hawai'i, Stanford, USC, Washington and Colorado. If you're interested in becoming a new season ticket holder for 2013 please contact the OSU Ticket Office at 1-800-GO-BEAVS between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. or visit BeaverTickets.com to place a $50 per seat deposit.