At Arizona’s NFL Pro Day in March, all eyes were on Juron Criner, and deservedly so. But David Douglas stole the show and could now be a possible draft selection. Douglas ran a reported 4.46 40-yard dash and put up 20 bench press reps of 225 pounds and a vertical of 36.5 inches. NFL teams, particularly the Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys, were intrigued. Douglas visited the Lions and spoke with their coaching staff. The native of McKinney, Texas, also worked out for the Cowboys.
“The one with the Cowboys went really well. At the Lions, it was just a pre-draft visit so I just met with the coaching staff,” Douglas said. “Now I just have to wait and see what happens with the draft.”
While spectators were caught a bit off guard by Douglas’ Pro Day, his former teammates and coaches weren’t.
Frank Scelfo, the UA’s former quarterback coach who had been housing Douglas and Nick Foles in Tucson during their pre-draft preparations, thinks the 6-foot-1, 205-pound receiver played his way into becoming a late-round draft pick.
“I think what’s going to happen with David, he really did a great job on the Pro Day, I think he’s going to get drafted,” Scelfo said. “I’d be surprised if he wasn’t. We could have done a better job utilizing his talents when he was at Arizona.”
Dave Nichol, Arizona’s former receivers coach, said Douglas’ Pro Day performance was important because it gives NFL teams motivation to check out his game film.
“I think more teams will probably go back and look at the film and be like, ‘OK, who is this kid? Let’s look at his stats,’” Nichol said. “Obviously he was very productive and I think that’s what the Pro Day did, make people have to go back and watch the film.
“When you talk to him and get him on the board and see what kind of kid he is, how smart he is, I would think he would be even more desirable for a team.”
Douglas, who is currently at home in Texas with his family, doesn’t know when or if he will be drafted, but he does know what he brings to the table as a receiver.
“I bring versatility,” Douglas said. “I started at pretty much every position from the slot to the outside. I can really play any receiver position, I can contribute on special teams … I’m just a smart player and hopefully can figure things out and be consistent.”
Crump would welcome the ‘Mr. Irrelevant’ moniker
For two years, Gino Crump sat and watched from the sidelines, biding his time. In 2010, Crump saw the field sparingly in 11 games, catching just four balls for 39 yards. Entering his senior season, playing time looked like it would still be hard to come by with the addition of Texas transfer Dan Buckner, freshman Austin Hill and the return of David Douglas, David Roberts and Juron Criner. But in the nation’s third-best passing offense, there were plenty of balls to go around. Crump ended 2011 with 65 catches for eighth place in Arizona history.
The native of Washington, D.C., said it was well worth the wait.
“It was a lot of relief to just get out there and finally show the world and the U of A fan base what I was all about,” Crump said. “Since I’ve been here, there’s been a lot of articles talking about my ability, but I never got a real shot to show everyone what I could do, so I was just more relieved than anything to get out there and show people what I had to offer. I just tried to enjoy every moment of it.”
Crump has pretty much been ignored by all draft prognosticators in the weeks and months leading up to the draft, but the 6-foot-2, 210-pound receiver said he would be OK with earning the title of “Mr. Irrelevant,” a moniker handed to the last player picked in the draft.
“I’d be happy being the last guy in the seventh round,” Crump said. “That’d be great for me. I was a walk-on so anything beyond U of A is a blessing.”
The “Mr. Irrelevant Award” includes an invitation to spend a weekend in Newport Beach with former NFL wide receiver Paul Thomas Salata, who established the award in 1976, when he was the last pick in the draft.
While he might not get drafted, NFL teams have taken notice. Crump said that “just about every team” has contacted him, and that the Arizona Cardinals and Miami Dolphins have expressed the most interest.
Former receivers coach Dave Nichol thinks the fact that he finally got some game film to show scouts after 2011 will help.
“I think what Gino did, and what he needed to do, from a personal standpoint, is get a lot of tape and get himself on film so guys can evaluate him,” Nichol said. “He’s a big, strong, fast guy and so, you know, I think there’s a place for that.”
