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SOUTH BEND — Former Notre Dame football quarterback Riley Leonard, fresh off a 16-game season and a runner-up finish in the College Football Playoff, wants to show he can go deep.
Leonard intends to throw at the NFL Scouting Combine on Saturday at Lucas Oil Stadium, but he will save the sprinting and other on-field testing for Notre Dame’s pro day sometime in March.
“One thing I want to showcase is my ability to extend the ball down the field,” Leonard said Friday. “You probably don’t see that as much on tape, but that’s something I’ve really been working on.”
Back home in Mobile, Ala., working with his trainers at QB Country, Leonard went straight from the Senior Bowl to sharpening his passing mechanics. Those social media clips showing Leonard as he flings an oversized medicine ball against the wall aren’t just for show.
“A lot of people think my arm might be a little bit weaker,” Leonard said, “but all that matters is that I think I have a strong arm. I’m ready to prove a lot of people wrong.”
Considered a mid-round pick in most pre-draft projections at this point, Leonard went 6 of 7, passing for 54 yards in the Senior Bowl on Feb. 1. That exhibition took place just 12 days after the CFP final against Ohio State, a 34-23 Notre Dame loss.
“One thing I wish I could have showcased more (in college) is probably the deep ball, extending the ball down the field,” Leonard said. “There were a lot of games this year where my job is to win the football game. There were games where we didn’t have to (throw deep).
“That was perfectly fine with me. I’m not an ego guy. I’m not worried about stats or anything like that. My job is to win the football game. Hopefully, I’ll be able to showcase the deep ball.”
Rated No. 108 among Pro Football Focus’s top 200 draft prospects and sixth at…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/article/ex-notre-dame-football-qb-191310250.html
Author : South Bend Tribune
Publish date : 2025-02-28 19:13:00
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