HBCU Combine At Saints Facility Continues Showing Strong Growth Ahead of NFL Draft
METAIRIE -- For the second year in a row, the Saints practice facility in Metairie played host to the HBCU Combine. It's the third straight year of this event, with the first being held at the University of South Alabama Jaguar Training Center in 2022.
Some 47 players represented HBCUs well on Monday, with 31 of 32 NFL teams in attendance, and some of those teams having at least two scouts in attendance. Omar Khan, general manager for the Steelers and a New Orleans native, was also present and prominent for the second straight year. He even made it a point to talk to one of the prospects on the practice field. Other notables in attendance included Steve Wyche (NFL Network), Charles Davis (NFL on CBS), Doug Williams (Super Bowl XXII MVP and Co-Founder of the Black College Football Hall of Fame) and many more.
Naturally, being in the Saints backyard, a lot of team personnel made appearances in addition to helping providing equipment services, hosting and also helping in drills. For New Orleans, Mickey Loomis, Jeff Ireland, Khai Harley and Dennis Allen all made appearances, as well as some position coaches. Players like Alvin Kamara, Cam Jordan and Malcolm Roach were also on-hand to show their support, with Kamara actually taking some photos with some of the draft hopefuls. We even saw some Saints players that we haven't seen in quite some time getting some private workout time in.
The HBCU Combine is a collaboration between the NFL and HBCU Legacy Bowl, which focuses on showcasing the skills from potential draft prospect hopefuls who have graduated from a HBCUs and have declared for the draft.
HBCU Combine - February 19, 2024
John J. Hendrix
While the sample size is just from Monday, there were some players who surely got on team's radars from their performance. Here's some of the offensive players who likely helped their stock.
- Jarveon Howard, RB (Alcorn)
- Taymon Cooke, WR/RET (North Carolina A&T)
- August Pitre III, WR (Southern)
- LaDarius Owens, RB (Texas Southern)
- Marcus Riley, WR/KR (Florida A&M)
- Eric Smith, CB (Florida A&M)
- R.J. Mobley, WR (Winston Salem)
- Jeremy Moussa, QB (Florida A&M)
Several players in attendance also have local ties and flavor.
- Cedric Anderson, DB (Grambling) - From Clinton, LA
- Jordan Carter, DB (Southern)
- Jaheem Hazel, DB (Jackson State)
- Jarveon Howard (Alcorn) - Syracuse transfer who attended East Marion High School in Columbia, MS, which is the same hometown as Johnathan Abram and Walter Payton.
- Lewis Matthews, LB (Grambling) - From Ferriday, LA
- August Pitre III, WR (Southern) - Rice transfer who is a native of Opelousas, LA
- Dwayne Stevens, TE (Jackson State) - From Ridgeland, MS
The upcoming week will get players ready for the Legacy Bowl, which will kickoff at 3 p.m. CT on NFL Network from Yulman Stadium at Tulane. Justin Simmons of the Broncos will serve as an honorary captain.
