Auburn's Eugene Asante Flashes Speed at NFL Combine

The Auburn Tigers linebacker was one of the fastest players on day one of the NFL Combine

Asante didn't disappoint during his 40-yard dash | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Auburn Tigers linebacker Eugene Asante showed off his wheels at the NFL Combine on Thursday. He led off the 40-yard dash for linebackers and finished in 4.48 seconds. 

Auburn's Eugene Asante kicks off the LB 40s with a 4.48u 💨

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At the posting of this story, Asante has the third-fastest 40 at the Combine. He’s locked in the second-fast 40 among players at this position. UCLA’s Kain Medrano edged him out by just 0.02 seconds (4.46 time). 

Linebackers and defensive lineman ran their 40s on the first of the four days of the Combine. Defensive backs and tight ends run on Friday. Quarterbacks, wide receivers and running backs run on Saturday. Offensive lineman run on Sunday. 

Asante also had a 10-yard split time of 1.52 seconds. This was the fastest among linebackers and is currently the best at the Combine. 

These are the only two parts of the Combine that he has participated in. 

According to his NFL.com draft profile, Asante was given a prospect grade of a 6.00, which labels him as a player with “traits or talent to be above-average backup.” 

Asante spent six seasons in college football. His first three seasons with UNC before he transferred to the Plains. He came in during the final year of the Bryan Harsin regime and stuck around for the first two years of the Hugh Freeze era. After only playing four games in his first year at Auburn under Harson, he played in all 25 the following two seasons and started 21 of them under Freeze. 

He finished his time at Auburn with 134 total tackles (85 solo) and 7.5 sacks. By his final season, he was a team captain. 

The NFL Combine runs through Sunday, March 2.  The NFL Draft will start Thursday, April 24, and runs through Saturday, April 26.