Bear Down Wildcats

Representatives from 12 NFL teams were present for Arizona's pro day on Tuesday. The event was held outdoors on FieldTurf.

A total of 12 Wildcats players worked out, but one in particular stood out.

Wide receiver Austin Hill (6-foot-2 1/4, 214 pounds) ran the 40-yard dash in 4.62 and 4.57 seconds. He had a 36 1/2-inch vertical jump and a 10-foot-9 broad jump. He posted times of 4.03 seconds in the 20-yard short shuttle and 6.65 seconds in the three-cone drill. He also performed 17 reps of 225 pounds on the bench press.

Hill had a very good positional workout and it appears that he has regained the form from his 2012 season, when he was a semifinalist for the Biletnikoff Award (given to college football's top receiver) and an All-Pac-12 second-team selection after posting 1,364 yards receiving (second in Pac-12). But, he missed the 2013 season with an ACL injury and his production dipped considerably in 2014 (635 yards and four touchdowns).

Hill is a big guy who can body-up defenders and make catches. If he checks out all right medically, Hill could be an early third-day selection in the 2015 NFL Draft.

Arizona coach Rich Rodriguez was described by NFL personnel at the pro day as being phenomenal, and very helpful in getting information on the team's top prospects.

For center Steven Gurrola, Tuesday was an opportunity to prove he’s strong enough to play in the NFL. He’s currently at 290 pounds and would like to get to 300 before the draft.

He said the knock on him is that he’s “a little undersized,” but he has drawn some interest from various NFL teams. Gurrola said he will workout for the Arizona Cardinals on the 16th. The Washington Redskins and Atlanta Falcons have also expressed interest in Gurrola through his agent. The center prepared for Tuesday mostly in Tucson, where he’s still taking classes.

“Everyone thinks they could have done better after something like this,” Gurrola said. “I just have to prove that I can play at that level. I believe I can.”

Gurrola is encouraged by the early interest from NFL teams and said he “was almost in tears” when his agent called to tell him about the Cardinals workout. He also said UA offensive line coach Jim Michalczik, a former assistant with the Oakland Raiders, has been helping Gurrola go through the process.

“Whatever he has to say, I’m going to do,” Gurrola said. “I know he’s been there.”

Others who participated Tuesday included safeties Jared Tevis, Tra’Mayne Bondurant and Jourdon Grandon.

Offensive tackle Mickey Baucus also went through the workouts as did defensive end Dan Pettinato, cornerback Jonathan McKnight, offensive tackle Fabbians Ebbele and a few others. Tevis, a former walk-on at the UA and a Canyon del Oro High School product, said he decided to chase his dream even though he’s pursing a master’s in finance at Arizona.

“This has been my dream, and after the season I had to make a tough decision whether to start my business career immediately or give my childhood dream a shot, and I felt I owed it to myself to give it my best shot,” Tevis said. “I’ve been training hard, and I think it paid off today.”