The 2020 NFL combine is in the books, and plenty of Michigan Wolverines football prospects made their marks in Indianapolis.
We recap our biggest takeaways surrounding the 11 Wolverines who were in attendance, including those who shined, tested well, and what surprised us from the weekend.
• Khaleke Hudson was one of the Strongest Players at the Combine
Viper Khaleke Hudson was always known as a workout enthusiast during his time at Michigan, and that past dedication in the weight room paid off at the combine.
He put up 30 reps of 225 pounds on the bench press, which were the most among linebackers and tied for the ninth most of any player in attendance at the combine.
The eight athletes who put up more reps than Hudson were all linemen, and only one other non-linemen put up more than 26 (Ole Miss running back Scottie Phillips lifted 29 times).
Hudson also ran a quality 40-yard dash time of 4.56, which checked in eighth among the linebackers.
"Big-time time," NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah said after his 40-yard dash. "He can cover over the slot and the tight end a little bit. He's a versatile player."
Hudson was widely viewed as a lower-round pick heading into the weekend, with most of the projections tabbing him as a future sixth or seventh-round selection.
Hudson certainly didn’t hurt his stock at the combine, though the debates of whether or not he’s a safety or a linebacker at the next level rage on.
"You can use him as your down safety or as your nickel linebacker," Jeremiah explained. "He's going to be great on special teams. There's a lot of value with a player like this who can run and fill all these different roles."
• Several Players Opened up About Their Backgrounds, Specifically Cesar Ruiz
The media settings at the combine allow players to open up about their backgrounds and their childhoods, with several of the spectators there anxious to learn more about where the athletes came from.
Nobody was more interesting to listen to than former Wolverine center Cesar Ruiz (at least from a U-M standpoint), with the potential first-round pick opening up about his rough youth in the crime-ridden town of Camden, N.J., and the tragedy that befell his family.
“I knew it was dangerous [in Camden], but I never thought anything of it — I just thought that’s how things were, because I had never seen the outside world before,” Ruiz said. “It will make or break you, and there were a lot of people it broke. You see things every day and hear about violent shootings and robberies every week.
“You become immune to it as a kid though because you see it so many times. I was fortunate enough to have a mom who was strict, so I was never allowed to be in those areas or get caught up in those situations.”
