Troy Pride Jr. Ready To Blow Up The NFL Scouting Combine
Notre Dame has nine former players set to attend the 2020 NFL Scouting Combine, which begins next week. It is an opportunity for each player to improve his draft stock. Before it begins, Irish Breakdown will profile each former Irish player and discuss what’s at stake for him at the combine.
TROY PRIDE JR., CORNERBACK
Height: 5-11½
Weight: 194
Hometown/High School: Greer, S.C. / Greer
2019 Stats: 40 tackles, 6 break ups, 1 interception
Career Stats: 121 tackles, 18 break ups, 4 interceptions
Overview: Pride came to Notre Dame more as a track athlete than a natural football player, and you could see that during his freshman season. Pride made three starts in his first season, and he flashed elite speed, but he was quite raw from a technique standpoint. His feel for coverage wasn’t ideal, but he could make up for mistakes with top-notch speed.
Pride stepped into the starting lineup again for the final four games of the 2017 season. He gave up just three completions for 37 yards during that stretch, and he made a number of clutch plays in Notre Dame’s 24-17 victory over Navy.
Pride took over a full-time starting role at cornerback in 2018, but he struggled during the first half of the season. Opponents completed 33 of 49 targets against Pride in the first six games, and he allowed 354 receiving yards. He missed the Pittsburgh game with an injury, and when he returned he was a completely different player.
In the final six games, opponents completed just 11 of 27 passes for 103 yards. Pride allowed just 3.8 yards per target and 9.4 yards per completion, which are elite numbers. In the Cotton Bowl matchup against Clemson, Pride gave up just two completions for 12 yards, with both completions coming near the line of scrimmage.
Pride had a strong senior season in coverage. Moving to the boundary for his final campaign, Pride struggled at times with back shoulder throws and playing the football down the field, but his coverage for the most part was outstanding. Pride allowed just 32 completions for 327 yards the entire season, which is 10 fewer completions and 86 fewer yards than Julian Love allowed during his All-American season in 2018.
There were games this season where opposing quarterbacks simply ignored Pride in the boundary. He shut down cornerback Michael Pittman Jr. from USC, who had four catches for just 29 yards, and three of his catches were screens behind the line.
This is a clip of Pride matched up against Clemson wide receiver Tee Higgins, who many view as a first-round pick. You can see Pride’s speed in this clip. He is easily running with Higgins, who can get no separation from Pride. You can also see Pride using his length to his advantage. His speed was always something he used effectively, but Pride’s functional strength didn’t always show up as it did in this clip.
Tackling in the run game and being more aggressive taking on blocks were also areas where Pride had issues at times.
What’s At Stake: Pride had an outstanding performance at the Reese’s Senior Bowl, which put him on the map with many analysts who didn’t pay enough attention to him during the last season and a half. His performance in Mobile included him playing the ball better than he did during his senior season, which likely eased some concerns scouts might have with him.
Pride boosting his stock at the Senior Bowl was huge for him, because the combine was where he was supposed to truly thrive. A track standout his first three years at Notre Dame, Pride was always expected to run fast at the combine. In fact, if he doesn’t at least run in the low 4.3s it might be viewed as a bit disappointing. Pride has been timed as fast as 4.30 at Notre Dame, and according to Pride, he’s even faster now.
If Pride can put up a 4.30 or faster his draft stock could see a significant rise. I’ve already seen mock drafts with him in the third round, and a blazing fast 40-time could rise him even higher. I’m also curious to see how his 40-time compares to other cornerbacks in the draft class.
But simply running fast isn’t all that matters for Pride at the combine. If his other numbers don’t match the 40-time it could stagnate his draft stock a bit. What I’m referring to here is a fast 40-time combined with slower change of direction numbers could give teams with any concerns about his ability to play routes fuel to keep him lower on their board.
If he’s also one of the top performers in the pro shuttle, the 3-cone drill and the new timed “W-drill” his draft stock will truly see a meteoric rise. That would mean his agility and change of direction is as good as his speed, which projects to him being a top cover corner at the next level.
Pride’s playing strength wasn’t always a plus for him, so a strong performance on the bench could be the final feather in his combine cap.
PREVIOUS COMBINE PREVIEWS
Cole Kmet, Tight End
Chris Finke, Wide Receiver
Khalid Kareem, Defensive End
Jalen Elliott, Safety
