Skill players wrap up first day of Big 12 Pro Day

FRISCO, Texas – The first-ever Big 12 Pro Day was held Thursday at the Star in Frisco; Texas Tech was represented by six of its 13 scheduled Pro Day participants in the skills portion, which comprised of the quarterbacks, running backs, wide receivers (Xavier White), tight ends (Baylor Cupp) and defensive backs (Malik Dunlap, Tyler Owens, Dadrion Taylor-Demerson and Rayshad Williams). Session two is slated for Saturday as the offensive and defensive lines, linebackers, and special teams players take center stage.

Thursday’s morning group featured wide receiver Xavier White and tight end Baylor Cupp. White turned heads with his 4.45 40-yard dash; the fastest 40-time recorded by any player in the morning. White participated in each drill offered, on the bench press he had 14 reps, he recorded a 31.5-inch vertical, his best broad jump was 9 feet, 10 inches and he had a 7.03-second shuttle and 4.20-second short shuttle.

Cupp had an impressive 23 reps on the bench press, jumped 30 inches in the vertical and had a broad jump best of 9 feet, 11 inches. Due to a lingering injury, Cupp did not participate in the 40-yard dash, shuttle, or short shuttle.

The afternoon round put a collection of four Texas Tech defensive backs in the spotlight, including NFL Scouting Combine participants Tyler Owens and Dadrion Taylor-Demerson. In addition, Malik Dunlap and Rayshad Williams had their opportunity to shine.

Taylor-Demerson, who posted head-turning numbers at the NFL Combine, including a 4.41 40-yard dash, a 38-inch vertical and a 10-foot, 3-inch broad jump, did not attempt those drills again on Thursday. However, he did record 18 reps on the bench press, which would have ranked tied for fifth among defensive backs at the NFL Combine. Taylor-Demerson also clocked a 7.00 shuttle and a 4.39 short shuttle.

Owens, who also put his name on the map with his 12-foot, 2-inch broad jump and 41-inch vertical at the NFL Combine, did not participate in any drills outside of the defensive back position drills. Notably, his NFL Combine broad jump was a full 10 inches better than anyone else at this year’s Combine and was the second-longest jump in Combine history, behind only the 12 feet, 3 inches recorded by Byron Jones at the 2015 Combine.

Back in Frisco, Dunlap impressed with a 10-foot, 4-inch broad jump and a 34-inch vertical, both bests among Red Raiders that participated in the respective drills on Thursday. In addition, he recorded a 4.68-second 40-yard dash, 7.18 shuttle and 4.45 short shuttle. He sat out of the bench press portion of the day.

Williams’ performance included a 4.57-second 40-yard dash, 7.07 shuttle and 4.42 short shuttle. His vert was 32 1/2 inches and his broad jump was 10 feet, 2 inches. He maxed out with 12 reps on the bench.

Up Next
Big 12 Pro Day resumes on Saturday morning, which will be kicked off by none other than the specialists. That group will feature Texas Tech’s Austin McNamara. Red Raider offensive linemen Cole Spencer, Rusty Staats and Dennis Wilburn will be in action as well as defensive linemen Myles Cole and Jaylon Hutchings. The linebacker’s group will feature one Red Raider in Tyrique Matthews.

-TECH-

Release Provided By MATT BURKHOLDER Texas Tech Athletics