OSU's Kurt Coleman impresses NFL scouts
By Carlos ?Big C? Holmes, Staff Writer
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Englewood native and Ohio State defensive back Kurt Coleman wrapped up an impressive week at the Senior Bowl on Saturday, Jan. 30. The Northmont High School graduate was among the top senior college football players in the country to take part in the pre-draft event.
According to sources in attendance, Coleman proved worthy of the invite by being a consistent performer throughout the week of practice. The Buckeyes safety drew more praise from coaches and scouts on the sideline than did USC standout safety Taylor Mays, who struggled. Coleman?s draft position appears to be on the rise.
Coleman received his first taste of the NFL while in Mobile and talked about his experience.
?Things were pretty hectic at the beginning of the week,? Coleman said. ?The coaches had us running around taking all these different kinds of tests. As the week went on, things slowed down and we started to have fun out there.?
The Senior Bowl is only the first step in a long process leading up to April?s draft. Coleman?s approach to the draft is business as usual.
?You have to approach this as a business and take this process very seriously,? he said. ?The Senior Bowl was a good first step in getting to know what dealing with professionals is really like. I learned a lot during the week of practice and feel I can be successful at the next level.?
The 5-foot-10, 190-pound Coleman is considered undersized by NFL standards, but that didn?t stop teams from taking notice. Coleman interviewed with nearly all 32 teams in attendance. The Cleveland Browns seem to have taken a liking to the safety meeting with Coleman twice.
What Coleman may lack in size he makes up for with playmaking ability.
Coleman is a very instinctive player with the ability to change a game due to his big-play ability. He?s aggressive, confident, smart, a sure-tackler and extremely versatile. Coleman can play either safety position as well as cornerback. However, free safety may be his natural position. Coleman will need to improve on his one-on-one cover skills entering the pros.
There have been questions about a lack of speed where Coleman is concerned, but I think Buckeyes safeties coach Paul Haynes put the speculations to rest.
?To me there is (40-yard)-fast and field-fast,? Haynes said. ?I never saw anyone run by Kurt. I never saw Kurt not catch someone. So for me, he plays the game fast. I have no idea what he?s going to run in the 40. But I know this, when you turn on the film he plays very fast. I don?t think that will be a factor with his draft status if teams do a good job studying him.?
