Still nursing a minor injury and knowing the importance of posting a fast time, Ohio State safety Kurt Coleman chose not to run the 40-yard dash yesterday at the NFL combine.
Coleman suffered an abdominal strain weeks ago while training, and it lingered to the point that he decided to wait until OSU's pro day March12 to run.
The 40 is important for most prospects, but even more so for Coleman, who wants to show NFL teams that he's fast enough to possibly play cornerback, as well.
"They want to see how fast I am," Coleman said, "because there's a difference between corner speed and safety speed, and they want to see if I have corner speed. I know I have corner speed."
He defines corner speed as under 4.5 seconds.
One reason he's focused on showing his versatility is that he is undersized for an NFL safety. His official combine measurements were 5-feet-10 and 192 pounds.
Only three of 20 safeties invited to the combine were less than 200 pounds, and only one was lighter than Coleman (Dennis Rogan of Tennessee at 185).
That makes Coleman potentially a "tweener" despite a productive college career.
"I'm the hybrid, where I can line up against the wide receiver or I can line up against a tight end," he said. "I feel like even though I'm not the tallest guy or maybe the heaviest guy, I use my weight and I use my height. I use my body efficiently."
Meanwhile, Whetstone graduate Akwasi Owusu-Ansah posted an impressive 40 time of 4.47. The Indiana (Pa.) University product is considered a top-100 prospect.
Yesterday was the combine's final day.
kgordon@dispatch.com