2023 NFL Combine: Seven Mountain West Players Earn Invites
NFL front offices will descend upon Indianapolis later this month for a closer look at seven of Mountain West football’s top prospects.
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The stage is set.
Now that college football’s all-star bowl games have wrapped themselves up for the winter, the NFL will turn its attention to Indianapolis later this month for the annual combine. This year, 319 players will look to put their best foot forward and cement their professional futures, a group which includes seven different Mountain West prospects from four different teams in the conference.
The Boise State Broncos lead that cohort with three players, offensive tackle John Ojukwu and defensive backs Tyreque Jones and JL Skinner. Ojukwu and Jones recently appeared in the East-West Shrine Game while Skinner earned recognition from his offensive peers at practice ahead of the Reese’s Senior Bowl, though he chose to skip the game to be with family after a close relative passed away.
Fresno State will send two players from its conference championship roster to Indianapolis, as well. Quarterback Jake Haener earned Senior Bowl MVP honors with his play in Mobile last weekend, while Jalen Moreno-Cropper earned rave reviews for his ability to work underneath and stretch the field.
Air Force tight end Kyle Patterson will get a chance to display his tools, as well, despite missing time to injury in each of the last two seasons. Though he only played in seven games in 2022, Pro Football Focus graded Patterson as the 11th-best player at his position over his 206 snaps, giving him a 86.5 overall mark and a 84.4 run-blocking grade which ranked third among all FBS tight ends.
Lastly, San Jose State defensive end Viliami Fehoko will look to maintain the momentum he built by earning the conference’s defensive player of the year nod last November. He appeared at the Shrine Bowl but did not practice or play because of injury.
The NFL Combine is scheduled to take place at Indianapolis’s Lucas Oil Stadium from February 26 to March 6. It will be broadcast on the NFL Network.
