Courtney Upshaw Already Drawing Interest Leading Up To NFL Draft

All three players opted to wait to run their 40-yard dash times for the second Alabama Pro Day and all three seemed to run rather disappointing times. Trent Richardson, who ESPN claimed was at about 70 percent, ran unofficial 40-yard dash times of 4.58 seconds both times. Many expected a much faster time for the big back, but he’s reportedly still not completely healthy. Richardson also didn’t quite set the 225-pound bench record like he planned, putting up only 25 reps on the bench.

Upshaw, who’s a bit of a tweener and has teams wondering if he’s a better fit at 3-4 linebacker or 4-3 defensive end, also ran a really disappointing 4.81 unofficial 40-yard dash. Safety Mark Barron clocked in the 40-yard dash at unofficial times of 4.54 and 4.73.

Alabama football will have pro day No. 2 on Thursday as Trent Richardson, Courtney Upshaw and Mark Barron will work out for NFL scouts. Richardson’s workout in particular will be watched closely considering he hasn’t done much since suffering a knee injury following the college football regular season.

Running backs have been devalued in recent years but Richardson’s draft stock has remained around the top 10, or even top-five range. He’s going to be a high pick and expected to contribute immediately. How high may depend at least in part in how he demonstrates to teams on Thursday how healthy his knee is following the minor surgery.