John Okwoli
Wide Receiver / Wyoming
Ed Hunt: How did you feel out there during your Pro Day?
John Okwoli: Today, I felt like I did good. On the bench, I wanted to get at least 15, but I got 14. That’s pretty good. On the vertical, I could have done better. I did what I needed to do. The 40, I was really satisfied with my 40 time. I don’t know the official number yet, it should come out soon. Someone told me the first 40 was a 4.37 and the second 40 was a 4.4 something. That should average somewhere around a 4.4. I think that’s a good time for me. Going through all the position drills, I think I did well. There are some things I still need to work on. I do expect calls from NFL teams for workouts. I will go from here.
Ed Hunt: We’re seeing this new prototypical receiver in the league that’s over 6 feet and runs a 4.4 or a 4.3. Your numbers fall amongst the top with that Sparq kind of score. Is that how you get onto an NFL roster?
John Okwoli: In this era of football players, everybody’s fast, strong and tall. I think I fit that mold. Hopefully, an NFL team can see that and take a chance on me and I want to prove them wrong.
Ed Hunt: What team’s scouts have you talked to?
John Okwoli: As of right now, I haven’t talked to any. I know my position coach, coach E, has talked to a scout for me during the season. I know they haven’t reached out to me specifically, but after this performance and my pro day, I expect to see teams reach out to me.
Ed Hunt: Other than athleticism and strength, what are your strengths? Things we can see on tape.
John Okwoli: On tape, I know I’m a good blocker. I know NFL scouts pride their receivers in blocking. It’s something a lot of people overlook like fans and analysts. As a receiver, you are just as important in the run game as you are in the passing game. I think I have solid hands. I think I’m a pure route runner and I think I can create separation. Coming from the University of Wyoming, we ran the ball really, really well. Most of the time, that wasn’t displayed. Passing was from me and Rocket. Other than that, I hope that NFL teams will be able to see that I can do those things effectively.
Ed Hunt: Can you talk to me about your special teams’ skill? What have you been asked to do here at Wyoming?
John Okwoli: On special teams, I’ve been asked to play on punt, punt return, kickoff and kick return. I know my freshman year, I started on all four. So especially on punt return, I was tasked with blocking for this outside dude, staying in front of your guy. Good hips and being able to change direction. It’s something I have a skill in and not many receivers have that skill, but I earned a lot of playing on special teams and that’s something I can bring to an NFL team.
Ed Hunt: Have you returned kicks and punts here?
John Okwoli: I’ve returned one kick here. I’m usually back there. I’m usually back there with Tyler (Hall) for my junior year and being back there with Austin Conway my senior year. I have some experience being back there. I could’ve caught more kickoffs, but that just didn’t happen here. I’m pretty confident in my ability to field punts and kickoffs. If an NFL team gives me a chance to do that then I can do that.
Ed Hunt: Did you play any other sports?
John Okwoli: In high school, I ran track and I played basketball. Basketball was really fun and it helped my footwork in terms of guarding people and that translated over into playing special teams in my career here. Track, definitely got me faster, and I think a lot of athletes should run track if they want to be good football players and excel in football.
