Scouting Combine Edge Rushers: Gross-Matos Conquers Adversity

Part 2 of our four-part series includes the incredibly journey of Penn State’s Yetur Gross-Matos as well as Alabama’s Anfernee Jennings and some smaller-school standouts.

Author:
Bill Huber
Publish date:
Feb 21, 2020 10:11 AM EST

In all, 34 edge defenders will be at the Scouting Combine. Some will work out with the defensive ends and some will work out with the linebackers. Part 2 of our four-part series includes the incredibly journey of Penn State’s Yetur Gross-Matos as well as Alabama’s Anfernee Jennings and some smaller-school standouts. (Underclassmen are noted with an asterisk.)

LB Tipa Galeai, Utah State (6-5, 235): Galeai was second-team all-Mountain West as a senior with five sacks and nine tackles for losses among his 55 stops. He had a huge junior campaign with team-leading figures of 10.5 sacks, 14 TFLs and three forced fumbles.

He started his career at TCU, where he recorded 4.5 sacks in two seasons, but was kicked off the team after being charged with assault. That incident means Galeai will not be allowed to go through testing at the Combine. “When I left TCU, I felt like I didn't know what was next for me, or what I wanted to do," Galeai told the school athletics site. "I still wanted to play football, but how was I going to get back into school? A lot of choices were placed in front of me, but for some reason, Utah State was the one that stuck out to me the most. Utah State is exactly what brought me out of that bad position I was in, in my life.” He enjoyed the number of Polynesians on the USU roster. His brother, Salanoa, was a long snapper for Utah State in 2014 and 2015.

DE Jonathan Garvin, Miami* (6-4, 250): Garvin recorded five sacks, nine tackles for losses and two forced fumbles among his 37 stops in 2019. He delivered more impact plays as a sophomore, when he delivered 5.5 sacks, finished fourth in the ACC with 17 tackles for losses and broke up five passes. His three-year totals consisted of 12.5 sacks, 29 TFLs and four forced fumbles.

As a senior at Lake Worth (Fla.) Community High School, he had 18 sacks and 59 TFLs. He packed on almost 30 pounds during his time at Miami. “One thing I love is they say I’m just a speed rusher,” Garvin told the Palm Beach Post. “But they don’t understand the technique that comes behind it, so it makes my job easier. When somebody thinks I’m a speed rusher, they put their hands out and then I knock them down. ... It doesn’t matter to me because I’m going to keep beating them like that.” His mom and dad played college basketball – his father at Bethune-Cookman. “Back in high school, if he had a move he missed during the game, we would talk about it,” Joe Garvin told the Athletic. “Sometimes, if it was bothering him, he would get me up at midnight and say ‘Dad, I need to go to the field.’ So, we did. I’d drive him out there and we’d spend about 45 minutes to an hour, one-on-one. When he showed me that, showed me how serious he was, I knew he was all-in.” He goes by the nickname “Spider.” As he told the Yoo Word: “It's something they came up with when I first came here because of the way I fit into the corner and the way I can get up, crawl on my hands and pick myself up. I'm able to just maintain great balance.”

DE Trevis Gipson, Tulsa (6-4, 268): Gipson had a strong senior season, ranking among the conference leaders with eight sacks and 15 tackles for losses. He added two forced fumbles. In four seasons, he collected 13 sacks and 25.5 TFLs.

Before his senior season, he participated in the Von Miller Pass Rush Summit in Las Vegas. “I’ve put in a lot of work and dedication to this game, and it’s good to see God opening doors for myself and allowing me to connect with people such as Von Miller to further my game,” Gipson told the Tulsa World. “I felt like I belonged, and I just want to keep that mindset and push myself even harder.” Tulsa was his only FBS offer. At the time, he promised revenge for all who overlooked him. “I only weighed 207 pounds as a defensive end,” he told the Tulsa World before his senior year. “I feel like a lot of college coaches didn’t believe that I could gain the weight, which I understand.” His mom ran track at North Texas, his dad played basketball at Texas and his older brother was an all-conference basketball player at Kansas State. The brother, Thomas Gipson, had a workout with the Packers in 2015.

DE Jonathan Greenard, Florida (6-3, 263): The transfer from Louisville led the SEC in sacks (9.5) and tackles for losses (15.5). He earned first-team all-conference with 52 tackles, three forced fumbles and a fumble recovery he took back 80 yards for a touchdown.

At Louisville, Greenard redshirted in 2015, started a total of six times in 2016 and 2017 and missed almost all of 2018 with a wrist injury. Having earned his degree, he was free to transfer without sitting out a season. He landed at Louisville due in part to his relationship with defensive coordinator Todd Grantham, who recruited Greenard to Louisville out of Hiram (Ga.) High School. "I remember him driving through the parking lot and he sped and stopped right in front of my car," Greenard told SI.com. "He gave me the offer [to Louisville] and I understood right then and there what he was about. I was only about 200, 210 pounds. I was a lot smaller. And for him to see that -- something I never saw in myself and something I kind of doubted myself on just as far as me being smaller and he gave me a shot.” Not having to learn a totally new defense overcame the move to the sweltering heat of Gainesville. “I take at least three or four showers a day,” he told Ocala.com. “And I have to wash clothes so much because I sweat so bad.” He missed two games with an ankle injury but came back to end the season. "I was on a brink of not wanting to play ball anymore and I'm living at a highest, one of the highest point of my life. This is the start for me," he told Rivals before the bowl game. "I just love the passion for the game. I love being a Gator... I feel like I have done everything I could here. It's going to be bittersweet to play in my last game but it will be one to remember."

DE Yetur Gross-Matos, Penn State* (6-5, 264): Gross-Matos was first-team all-Big Ten with 9.5 sacks and 15 tackles for losses in 2019. That was a good season but not quite as good as his sophomore campaign, when he had eight sacks, 20 tackles for losses, 54 total tackles and the only two forced fumbles of his career. In three seasons, he had 18.5 sacks and 36.5 TFLs.

Gross-Matos has overcome a lot of personal tragedy. When he was 11, his brother was struck by lightning and died. “Immediately the ground started shaking,” Yetur recalled to Centre Daily. “People fell over onto the ground, got up and looked around. But he didn’t get up.” When he was 2, his father died after saving the youngster from drowning. “I just know if he didn't jump into that water to save me, I wouldn't be here right now,” he said in a lengthy story on ESPN.com. I'm still breathing because of him. I definitely see it as a sacrifice, and I'm eternally grateful.” Football would change his life. “I just started working out because I was really chubby,” Gross-Matos told the Sun Gazette. “And I didn’t want to be chubby anymore. Then I started playing football, ended up playing varsity that year — ninth grade — and then I fell in love with the sport and started training.”

DE LaDarius Hamilton, North Texas (6-3, 260): As a senior, Hamilton recorded 8.5 sacks, 10.5 tackles for losses and one forced fumble. He finished his career tied for sixth in program history with 17 sacks and added 28.5 TFLs.

At Corrigan-Camden High School in Corrigan, Texas, he was an offensive tackle, defensive end, linebacker, tight end, long snapper and, at times, kicker. “When recruiters came in they kept asking, ‘Do you think [Hamilton]’s an inside linebacker, outside linebacker or defensive end?'” C-C coach Seven Armstrong told North Texas Daily. “I basically told them he could play where he was told to play. I thought he would be a good pass rusher and evidently he is.” In 2018, North Texas unveiled a statue to honor Hall of Famer “Mean Joe” Greene. That week, Hamilton was given Greene’s retired No. 75 jersey to wear against Louisiana Tech.“When they first told me [Greene] said I could wear the jersey I was like, ‘This has got to be a joke, right?'” Hamilton told North Texas Daily. “We get to the game and I put it on and I’m wearing the jersey just standing there like, ‘This is crazy.’ So I go out and I see he’s sitting there by the gate and he tells me, ‘Man just relax, I’ve had a lot of good games in that jersey and I also had some bad ones, just go out there and play.’ So that kind of eased the nerves and the tension of the game but at the same time, this is Mean Joe’s jersey so it was definitely a great experience and a huge honor to wear that jersey.”

DE Alex Highsmith, Charlotte (6-4, 242): As a senior, Highsmith broke school records for sacks in a game (4.5 vs. Old Dominion), season (14.0) and career (20.0), and tackles for losses in a game (5.0) and season (21.5). He became the first All-American in program history by finishing fourth nationally with 14 sacks and fifth nationally with 21.5 tackles for losses while recording a career-high 75 tackles.

“He was a dude,” Clemson left tackle Jackson Carman said. “I’ve been playing football for 12 years and he’s by far the fastest off the ball I’ve ever gone against. Ever.” Not bad for a former walk-on. He received a scholarship between his freshman and sophomore seasons. “I looked up to the sky and said, ‘Thank you, Jesus,’” Highsmith told the Charlotte Observer. “It was one day I’ll never forget.” What did everyone miss? “He was literally a late bloomer,” his father, Sam Highsmith, said in that Observer story. “And he was a little overweight and had no real speed.” As Charlotte coach Will Healy in the Charlotte Post: “What a great college football story. You’re talking about a guy who walked on here, who now is preseason all-conference, has got some All-American type hype around him and he lives up to it. He is a self-made great football player that I know Marcus West has had a ton of fun coaching. I think he’s dynamic. I think he rushes the passer really well. He’s strong. He’s physical. You hope your best players are also your best leaders, and he’s definitely that.”

DE Trevon Hill, Miami (6-3, 238): In his one season with the Hurricanes, he ranked fourth on the team with 4.5 sacks and 9.5 tackles for losses. He spent the previous four seasons with Virginia Tech, where he accumulated 11.5 sacks and 20 tackles for losses.

Early in the 2018 season, he got into a heated argument with Tech’s strength and conditioning coach at halftime of a game, which led to his dismissal from the program. He was “confused and hurt” about the decision. “I feel like personally I could’ve handled it a little bit better,” Hill told the Daily Press. “At the same time, I got spit in my face pretty much. It felt like I got spit in my face with the way it was handled, because all it was was a heated discussion between two grown men. It didn’t go any further than that. I don’t know. I’m still kind of speechless about it, but … it’s all love between me and those boys (at Tech). They know what time it is. When I step on that field, it’s business. It’s nothing personal. It’s just strictly business. I’ve got to do what I’ve got to do.” He graduated from Virginia Tech, which allowed him to play at Miami immediately. At his graduation, he merged his thumbs to form a “U” – the letter that represents Miami. “I know a lot of people were mad about that, but that was me just saying that I’m moving on,” Hill told the Star Exponent.

LB Anfernee Jennings, Alabama (6-3, 259): Jennings was first-team all-SEC as a senior with eight sacks and 12.5 tackles for losses, figures that ranked in the top four in the conference. As a junior, not only did he have 6.5 sacks and 14 TFLs but he led the team with 12 passes defensed. He finished third on the team with 83 tackles, forced one fumble and intercepted one pass. His four-season totals were 15.5 sacks, 34.5 TFLs, 20 passes defensed and three forced fumbles.

In the 2017 Sugar Bowl against Clemson, Jennings suffered a gruesome knee injury. It wasn’t just a knee injury, though. A fan on Twitter thought it might be something worse and alerted Jennings via Twitter. The next morning, Jennings went in for another check and it was found the pulse in the injured leg wasn’t as strong as the healthy leg. Had it gone unnoticed, he might have lost his leg. "It's definitely been a long process and it's been a challenge," Jennings told AL.com before the 2018 season. "But sometimes we need a challenge, and it challenged me to push even harder and to just be the best version of myself I can be. I can't thank God enough for giving me a chance to continue to play football and just look forward to a great, healthy season.” Just before Christmas this past December, he became a father. “It’s tremendous,” Jennings said. “I realize that it’s not just me, and I have a family to feed. I’m just going about it, doing everything that I can to just put us in a good situation.” A younger brother, Shawn, transferred from Alabama to South Alabama.