Per GoBearcats:
Former Cincinnati cornerback Coby Bryant is looking forward to measuring himself against some of the nation’s top NFL Draft prospects at the Reese’s Senior Bowl on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. ET (NFL Network) at South Alabama’s Hancock Whitney Stadium.
He’ll be competing in Mobile with some of his UC teammates one last time, too.
Bryant and five other Bearcats are all members of the National Team in the annual college all-star game that gives NFL teams an opportunity to watch prospects up close ahead of the NFL Combine.
“I’m excited for the Senior Bowl,” said Bryant, a fifth-year player and team captain who captured the 2021 Jim Thorpe Award as the nation’s top defensive back. “I’m looking forward to the interviews with the NFL teams, but most of all just competing with my brothers one last time against the best seniors in college football.
“All of us have great relationships. It’s not just us having small talk. We will be laughing and having fun. I can’t wait for one more game with my boys.”
Bryant is joined on the National Team, which is being coached by the New York Jets staff, by quarterback Desmond Ridder, wide receiver Alec Pierce, defensive end Myjai Sanders, running back Jerome Ford and linebacker Darrian Beavers.
Senior Bowl practice started on Monday.
The Senior Bowl is part of a busy stretch for Bryant. The day after the game, he will fly to Oklahoma City to officially receive the Thorpe Award at a banquet at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum on Feb. 8.
“I have been looking forward to this since the season ended,” he said. “It’s such an incredible honor to receive this award.”
“I’m honored to represent myself, my family, the university of Cincinnati and also all of the kids back in Cleveland. I want to show people that you can do anything you put your mind to if you work hard, and also that character is important. Character is important in football, but also in life.”
Following the Thorpe Award, Bryant will return to Columbus, Ohio to continue training for the NFL Combine at Plus 2 University where he has been working out throughout January.
A typical day for Bryant this month includes breakfast followed by a speed workout at 9:45 a.m. After his speed work, he has strength training before heading back home to review coverages and offensive schemes in addition to other zoom meetings and NFL Combine prep.
“I have been focused on the process of improving during my training,” Bryant said. “I’m working on the things I’ve got feedback from that I can work on. I’m just getting better and staying healthy.”
All six Bearcats at the Senior Bowl have an opportunity to move up draft boards. Ridder is firmly in the conversation to be one of the first quarterbacks taken, while Bryant, Pierce and Sanders have been projected as high as early second round picks from NFL Draft projection services.
Beavers and Ford are also potential Day 2 picks. The NFL Draft is slated for April 28-30.
With cornerback Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner projected as a first-round pick in addition to the Senior Bowl group and safety Bryan Cook, who was selected for the game, but won’t play following surgery, Cincinnati will challenge the school record for most draft picks this spring, which was set in 2009 when six Bearcats were drafted led by second-round selection Connor Barwin.
The road to the NFL Draft officially starts this week.
“I’m definitely looking forward to competing (this weekend) and showing why I won the Thorpe Award,” Bryant said.
