Stephen Hill on draft combine performance
Greetings-
Stephen Hill’s name is on the lips of draftniks after a blistering performance at the NFL draft combine Sunday. I spoke with the former Georgia Tech receiver Monday and have notes from the interview.
1. I’d say he was proud and excited for his strong showing in Indianapolis, but not at all surprised. He had said last week he wanted to run a 4.3 in the 40, and I suppose you don’t go around saying that if you don’t know you can already do it, which was the case.
“I actually ran a 4.3 two weeks ago,” Hill said.
Hill just needed to bring it out of himself again. (Interesting nfl.com story about Hill’s training.)
“Of course, I’m not a guy that’s going to brag and be about it, but I was just confident in what I was going to do,” he said.
2. The combine is often described as a strange, grueling process – a battery of job interviews with some of the biggest names in the NFL, hours’ worth of physical exams and then the strength and speed testing. Hill sound like he handled himself fine, just doing what he was asked.
“Other than that, it was about being mentally tough,” he said. “I have matured very much coming from Tech. They have taught me well to handle certain things.”
3. He said he was interviewed by 30 of the 32 teams, the exceptions being the Buffalo Bills and the Philadelphia Eagles. (I don’t know exactly what, if anything, to read into that. A lot of stuff like that around draft time is a poker game. It could be that Chan Gailey feels like he can find out whatever he needs to know about Hill through his contacts at Tech, or that the Eagles don’t like to tip off their hand to players they really want. Or neither has interest, or had other players they wanted to talk to. Hard to tell.)
He got a lot of questions about how he’ll make the adjustment from the spread option to a pro-style offense. His response was that receivers in the offense read coverages and make adjustments like in any other offense.
4. The reaction from Hill’s performance was considerable. He was officially timed at 4.36, tied for the fastest among all participants, and his broad jump of 11′1″ was also the best. His 39.5-inch vertical was fifth. Further, he performed well in the pass-catching drills and, according to Sports Illustrated’s Peter King, made the catch of the combine, “a diving catch in which he laid out and caught the ball at the end of his fingertips.” King went so far as to call him “The Man” from the workouts.
Sports Illustrated’s Tony Pauline put him at the top of the list of risers, saying that his performance lifted Hill into the “early part of Round 2.” I went back and did a little bit of homework on Pauline’s projections. He wasn’t 100 percent accurate, but he was in the ballpark more often than not. I am among those who wonder why so much value is placed on a 40 time – if that’s indeed the case – but more power to Hill if it helps him.
NFL Network draft analyst Mike Mayock said Hill “killed it” in Indianapolis, which will force teams to do more research on him.
5. Hill’s next step is Tech’s pro day March 6. Hill will undoubtedly attract plenty of scouts, which will help get looks for guys like Roddy Jones, Steven Sylvester and Jason Peters, who were not invited to the combine and, if I had to guess, will likely be undrafted free agent types. Hill said that until then, he’ll be working out with former Falcons great Terance Mathis, working on his pass catching and route running. He acknowledged that he has dropped easy passes, and he has been devoting himself to looking passes in, catching the ball with his hands away from his body and developing the strength to bring the ball into his body.
He said he wasn’t sure who he’ll have throwing to him. I’m not sure what the rules are, but I remember that Calvin Johnson ran routes for Taylor Bennett at Tech’s 2009 pro day (Bennett had already transferred to Louisiana Tech, but I would surmise he was permitted to participate at Tech’s pro day since he had been at school there.)
“I feel like I turned some heads, but I’m just trying to keep it humble and get ready for the pro day,” he said.
Thanks for reading.
Ken Sugiura, Georgia Tech blog
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104 comments Add your comment
GTfan2012
February 29th, 2012
10:16 am
WnE, Your conclusion is NOT A FACT!!!! Its your opinion. The two facts presented don’t automatically lead to that conclusion, no matter how much you wish it to be so.
BS Patrol
February 29th, 2012
10:17 am
SEC speed > Ludicrous speed
ptcdawg
February 29th, 2012
10:24 am
Here’s a tip for Hill for pro day:
Put on a red jersey and have Reggie Ball throw to you.
GT fan
February 29th, 2012
10:24 am
Oh boy, more “fascinating” commentary from ole WnE.
Stein, High Tech, GTfan2012, et al … Lava soap is on sale at Kroger, I say we invite WnE over for an old fashion sock party!
To suggest that GT has no players on it’s defensive roster that could make UGA’s 2 deep roster just proves again his stupidity and bias against GT. And the guy claims to be a GT fan?
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again … WnE is the smartest person he knows. Pretty sad.
FL Jacket
February 29th, 2012
10:24 am
BS Patrol…
I think you need to pull WeenE over for excessive idiocy.
WnE
February 29th, 2012
10:27 am
re:
Oh boy, more “fascinating” commentary from ole WnE.
Stein, High Tech, GTfan2012, et al … Lava soap is on sale at Kroger, I say we invite WnE over for an old fashion sock party!
To suggest that GT has no players on it’s defensive roster that could make UGA’s 2 deep roster just proves again his stupidity and bias against GT. And the guy claims to be a GT fan?
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again … WnE is the smartest person he knows. Pretty sad.
_________________
Go ahead and start listing all the GT defensive players from our 2-deep that could make UGA’s 2-deep on defense.
Not Disappointed
February 29th, 2012
10:29 am
Keep it up Stephen! We are all proud of you! Ramblin Wreck for life!
Go Jackets!
HighTech
February 29th, 2012
10:30 am
WnE
December 14th, 2011
2:18 pm
Before you GT fan get too happy with our “steal” of a recruit from Bama, remember that we also stole 4* Recruit Stephen Hill from uga,and then they proceeded to recruit tons of WRs that have proven to be better than S. Hill, if Hill had gone to UGa he’d be the 8th option at WR for them.
Teams like Bama/LSU that lose these types of players and even uga sometimes can jsut shrug it off and keep on doing what they’re doing.
So. Malcolm Mitchell
So. Michael Bennett
So. Chris Conley
And those are just some of the WRs that have made ugag not even miss the 4* Recruit that we stole from them, not to mention Hill can’t catch very well vs. the good teams but is great vs. the crappy D1-AAs that GT plays.
In summary take it all with a grain of salt, sometimes these things don’t play out like you hope they will.
—————————————————-
WnE
December 14th, 2011
2:34 pm
No one said cry GTBbob, just temper your enthusiasm, remember the reactions from the GT fanbase when we stole 4*-S. Hill from uga.
Since then they/uga stole 2 WRs that we WANTED badly, Justin Scott-Wesley and Cris Conley that really could have been difference makers for GT.
From Hill’s constant drops vs. BCS team I’d say that uga got the best of the deal when we “stole” S. Hill from them.
———————————————————————————————–
What was this about Stephen Hill?
LARRY
February 29th, 2012
10:30 am
The kid couldn’t catch a order of hashbrowns with his fly open!!!
GT fan
February 29th, 2012
10:30 am
When do they take the Wonderlic test?
Congrats to SH on a fantastic combine! Awesome news for this (selfish) GT fan. His combine, and subsequent higher draft position certainly doesn’t hurt Jeff Greene or Darren Waller’s confindence going forward. And it’s showing many pesimists that GT isn’t a graveyard for WR prospects!
Kudos SH (and Bebe)! Next up: Jeff Greene and/or Darren Waller….
FL Jacket
February 29th, 2012
10:31 am
WnE…
Jason Peters
Jeremiah Attaochu
Julian Burnett
Rod Sweeting
Louis Young
Quayshawn Nealy
The only place we are seriously behind on uGA is at the D-Line…of course I’m sure you’re going to defer to your own judgement (as always) on this one
George Stein
February 29th, 2012
10:35 am
All you have to do with WnE is ask him to project something and he’ll run. He knows he can’t sneak anything by me. Daddy’s home.
mr. wolverinie
February 29th, 2012
10:35 am
This blog is full of ignorant people who wish they had a son as good as Stephen. After his performance in the combine, I still cannot believe people are still doubting this kids ability. Do you realize doubt motivates people.
For the record, he could have started at any BCS school in the country. The proof was how he performed as well or even better than the elite receivers in his class. He made the correct decision to leave Tech to pursue his NFL career. Like many others, including Calvin Johnson, he can return to finish his degree.
He is not the first receiver to drop passes, and won’t be the last. However, he realize catching and route running is something he needs to work on, therefore, he is seeking guidance from Terrance Mathis, one of the greatest wideouts in Falcon’s history.
What is not in this article also is how humble of a kid he is. Stephen stops by the Miller Grove High School all the time to thank his former coaches and teachers that help build the bridge to success for him. While he is there, he always takes time to speak to some of the students about the value of ‘hard work.’
Keep up the good work!
GT fan
February 29th, 2012
10:46 am
All 11 WnE.
Thanks, now go away.
GT fan
February 29th, 2012
10:53 am
Spot on Stein!
WnE, with all his genius, thinks GT has no players who could make UGA’s 2-deep.
Then when you point out how stupid he is by claiming that, if he responds, he changes his story to “name the guys on GT’s 2-deep that would make UGA’s 2-deep”.
Most true GT fans understand that GT can’t sustain the depth that UGA can, but for a suposed GT fan (WnE) to suggest GT has no players that could make UGA’s 2-deep roster is just plain stupid. And you can’t fix stupid!
WnE … the smartest person HE knows!
George Stein
February 29th, 2012
11:01 am
Agreed, GT fan.
GTfan2012
February 29th, 2012
11:03 am
Ugh… I just posted a big long post detailing WnE’s lies, but for some reason it didn’t show up. here’s the short version.
1. He lied about UGA’s interest in Stephen Hill, to make it seem like Hill was an elite WR prospect whose talents GT wasted.
2. He claims that CPJ lies to recruits with no proof or even anecdotal evidence (you can’t even find bitter former recruits that claim CPJ lies like you can with many other coaches).
5 star recruits, 2 star results
February 29th, 2012
11:06 am
Since GT/CPJ get all the blame for Hill’s poor pre draft projection. do they also get the credit for Bey Bey’s high projection and subsequent first round selection? I’m really confused. Did the coaching staff forget how to coach receivers in between the two? Or did one take better advantage of his opportunities than the other while at Tech?
crackbaby
February 29th, 2012
11:07 am
@ Mr. Wolverine
Thank you for contributing some nice information (facts, that is) and your opinion that is based on relevant experience. This blog could use a little fresh air…
WnE
February 29th, 2012
11:15 am
time to eat my magic beans and watch my WnE grow!
GTfan2012
February 29th, 2012
11:18 am
We are talking about Stephen Hill lie somehow he was a failure at GT. Stephen Hill made some spectacular catches at GT. Stephen Hill lead the nation in ypc in 2011. Even as a WR in a triple option offense, Stephen Hill finished 2011 with 820 yards receiving, ranking him 68th out of all D-1 WRs. I’ll note that that was more yards than Miami’s Tommy Streeter, who is another guy getting a lot of notiriety for his combine performance. Is Miami coaching down its WRs, too?
Italian_29
February 29th, 2012
11:26 am
WnE is also know as BuLLdog, & Thomas Brown on our blogs guys, he isn’t a Tech fan or a GA fan, he is a TROLL that LOVES to stir the pot, the best thing to do is just ignore him and eventually he goes away. Good luck next season and Congrats to Stephen Hill for being able to continue his dream of playing in the NFL.
IL Jacket
February 29th, 2012
11:39 am
FL Jacket, I will say slydog’s post did get me thinking that there was so much more we could have done with Stephen Hill, if only we could find a QB to get him the ball. For the future, I would hope CPJ would even consider rotating QBs to get an arm in on passing downs. We wouldn’t be the first team to do it and it would provide another element of surprise to our offense, which is sometimes too predictable.
If Stephen Hill is representative of the quality of players that are being developed at Miller Grove High School, we should be spending a lot more time there.
WnE
February 29th, 2012
11:40 am
I’m not BuLLdog, but I am BaLLhawk.
J'boroJacket
February 29th, 2012
11:54 am
Sure we haven’t thrown the ball so much in the option offense. One reason has been our efficiency whether it was a good/bad pass and/or a drop. Given that we had better throwers and people catching, CPJ could throw more- to mix it up.
One thing that our receivers do learn better in this offense is blocking. Many teams need receivers who will also block downfield to enable RBs to get extra yards. Good luck to Hill. He is making the best of his opportunity.
Italian_29
February 29th, 2012
11:55 am
Yeah right.
Ghost
February 29th, 2012
11:58 am
FL Jacket
Jason Peters Don’t think he would have played a down on the dline at UGA
Jeremiah Attaochu Might make 2 deep but that would be ?? UGA deep enough at the OLb position that 5 star drew is moving to DE.
Julian Burnett ?? little too small for the 3-4,
Rod Sweeting again maybe in a nickel package,
Louis Young , could possibly crack the 2 deep due to the suspensions
Quayshawn Nealy too small
Tech biggest problem on defense is size. A problem i see for the DB’s at tech is they don’t get to practice against quality WRS.
GTfan2012
February 29th, 2012
12:06 pm
Ghost,
I agree with some of your assessments, but I think you are VERY wrong on two of them. Jason Peters is a very good 3-4 DE. I do not believe you have 4 guys at DE at UGA that are significantly better than him. The problem with 3-4 DE, is that there aren’t any good stats to measure. You don’t see a lot of sacks out of those guys and you don’t see them making a ton of tackles, either.
Also, your comment about DBs is laughable. GT had a 1st round NFL WR in 2009 and will likely had a 2nd round NFL WR in 2011. There aren’t many schools that have that kind of talent at WR.
GIVE ME A BREAK
February 29th, 2012
12:20 pm
D. Thomas dropped a big pass against UGA. The fact is that good receivers drop some passes. Ask Roddy White. Stephen having a great showing at the combine is great for GT. Tech will have three of the most explosive receivers in the NFL. ” ROCK ON YELLOW JACKETS “
FL Jacket
February 29th, 2012
12:23 pm
Ghost…
Are you honestly trying to explain to me that 4-star recruits like Jason Peters, Rod Sweeting, and Louis Yound wouldn’t play in uGA’s defense? Seriously?
I mean, does one’s proximity to Tech Tower all of a sudden make them suck at football?
ps…By the way, Julian Burnett is our Rennie Curran. He’s an undersized playmaker at LB
Ghost
February 29th, 2012
12:28 pm
Fl Jacket,Rennie, left UGA early because of the 3-4. S
FL Jacket
February 29th, 2012
12:32 pm
Ghost…
Do you honestly think Rennie Curran wouls stop making plays in the 3-4? Was he that relaiant on his DTs to occupy lineman or was he capable of sheding blocks on his own?
Ghost
February 29th, 2012
12:35 pm
Gtfan2012, S Hill, wasn’t a good receiver at Tech, he’s athletic but his skills were not good, as fo D Thomas , again he was a good receiver at tech , but his route running etc wasn’t up to what polished receivers do. Lets not confuse athleticism with being a good receiver . D thomas was a high draft pick because he was 6 3 weighed 235 and ran a sub 4 .4 forty not because of his skills as a receiver.How many teams run 1 receiver sets?
Ghost
February 29th, 2012
12:49 pm
Fl jacket , Rennie is too small for a 3-4 defense. It was the main reason he left UGA. take a look around and tell me how many 5-10 200 lbs lbers successfully playing in a 3-4.I said Sweating would play in a nickel package. Would you please tell me who they would supplant at Georgia, their are many 4 star recruits in HS that don’t see playing time at Georgia.
George Stein
February 29th, 2012
1:04 pm
Can we use Ghost’s comment at 12:49 in recruiting against UGA going forward?
Ghost
February 29th, 2012
1:13 pm
Peters 6′2 278 lbs, still a little small for a 3-4 DE , Georgia rotated 6-3 294 G smith and 6-4 303 Lott in for starters tyson 6-2 306 and jones 6-3 309. and played both geathers and jenkins some at DE.
In my opinion (take it or leave it)tech is too small on the front 7 to run the 3-4.
Ghost
February 29th, 2012
1:19 pm
Sure George, Clemmons is either going to put on 20 or 30 lb or move to safety.Georgia was too small on the front 7 in 2010 to run the 3-4.
George Stein
February 29th, 2012
1:21 pm
I think that’s true, Ghost. It’s why I wondered if y’all would redshirt him or try to play him at safety as a means of getting his athleticism on the field.
Al Bundy
February 29th, 2012
1:23 pm
I think WnE is actually Nick Saban.
WnE
February 29th, 2012
1:33 pm
re:
Since GT/CPJ get all the blame for Hill’s poor pre draft projection. do they also get the credit for Bey Bey’s high projection and subsequent first round selection? I’m really confused. Did the coaching staff forget how to coach receivers in between the two? Or did one take better advantage of his opportunities than the other while at Tech?
__________________
Bay-Bay wasn’t projected as a High Draft choice either.
Bay-Bay had a 2nd or 3rd round grade going into the Combine/Pro-day period.
Bay-Bay got lucky that his Training Guru Videotaped him running a 4.38 forty at 235lbs when he broke a bone in his foot, when they sent the tape out THEN bay-Bay shot up the draft boards.
But based only on CPJ’s crappy, gimmicky Offense Bay-Bay was projected as a 3rd Round guys, maybe 2nd round.
Just like HILL, BAY-BAY succeeded DESPITE GT & CPJ’s crappy Offense!
Playing for CPJ will lower your DRAFT grade, and unless you have a freakish Combine then you’ll LOSE Money on your first contract’s Signing bonus.
WnE
February 29th, 2012
1:45 pm
FACT: Terrance Mathis can TEACH/COACH better FUNDAMENTALS into Stephen Hill in 3-weeks leading up to the Combine that GT/CPJ/CPJ’s staff can in THREE FULL SEASONS at GT!.
All the boot-licking-toadies that are lying to themselves about CPJ’s coaching ability are in DENIAL!
Many/Most GT that saw the Combine didn’t even RECOGNIZE that Stephen Hill that they saw, the guy that got 3-weeks of COACHING from Terrance Mathis was hardly recognizable to GT fans, and yet they are disagreeing with me whe nI QUESTION the quality of the COACHING & FUNDAMENTALS that Hill got at GT.
What we saw from Hill at the Combine after 3-weeks of REAL WR-coaching, should be a SERIOUS WARNING to the parents of ANY RECRUIT that GT WILL NOT develop/TEACH your SON the FB Skills that they SHOULD be teaching!
Now please try and argue that Terrance Mathis did NOT teach Hill better WR-Fundamentals in 3-weeks that Coach Kung Fu Panda did in THREE YEARS?
Stephen Hill & Mr. Hill , i would like to apologize for the POOR COACHING that you received at GT, you deserved better than what GT’s coaching Staff did for you!
deuce coupe
February 29th, 2012
1:47 pm
Hill is a BIG wide reciever with speed
who knows how to block*.
*(thanks to Coach Paul Johnson).
nate from detroit
February 29th, 2012
2:00 pm
Deuce coupe, a big receiver with speed who knows how to block becomes a Shannon Sharpe type TE in the NFL. As long as CPJ is at Tech, you will rarely get a pro-type QB or a pro-type WR. He doesn’t want either one at Tech because they don’t fit his system. In defense of S Hill, if the ball is thrown your way 25 times a season, people are going to remember 4-5 drops more than if the ball is thrown your way 50-60 times a season and you drop 4-5.
Ghost
February 29th, 2012
2:02 pm
George,Clemmons is supposedly going to get a look at safety.Last year I saw him play in a couple of games and he looked good at wr , good hands and fast, unless he gets injured he will see pt even if its on special teams.
George Stein
February 29th, 2012
2:09 pm
Don’t even mention injuries, Ghost. I wouldn’t wish that on my worst enemy.
Presumably, a WR that drops 4-5 out of 25 will drop more if he’s thrown to more, nate.
nate from detroit
February 29th, 2012
2:19 pm
George, I realize that the more passes that are thrown to a receiver, the more likely his ratio of catches to drops will stay near the same, I’m just saying that with fewer passes thrown the fans remember the drops more.
WnE
February 29th, 2012
2:32 pm
re:
Don’t even mention injuries, Ghost. I wouldn’t wish that on my worst enemy.
Presumably, a WR that drops 4-5 out of 25 will drop more if he’s thrown to more, nate.
_______________
The real issue is practice TIME.
CPJ isn’t serious about developing a serious BCS-Level passing Game, in fact many of his boot-licking-toadies will point out that we beat UGA in 2008 and we only attempted ONE PASS the entire game.
CPJ doesn’t devote the PRACTICE TIME to the passing game, so under game pressure the TIMING is not there so guys like Hill and the QBs and the A-Backs look worse than if they had normal practice Reps in the passing game.
Many of GT’s receivers/A-backs seem to have “hands issues” and the main reason is thatthey don’t see enough Reps in practice.
And that is CLEARLY THE COACH’S DECISION, we are horrible at passing because CPJ doesn’t care about the passing game, just like he doesn’t care about STs and other facets of being a big-time BCs-Level CFB HC.
George Stein
February 29th, 2012
2:52 pm
If only WnE could be the head coach. He seems to have it all figured out.
Buzz 2011
February 29th, 2012
3:15 pm
GT has produced the best receivers in the NFL for years now!
Just think, some of our competitors called the Jacket offense a
” high school” offense.. Who is laughing now..
patience
February 29th, 2012
3:32 pm
WnE, I see you are very selective about who you respond to on this blog, but how about you just give us all a name of a coach/coaches that you would like to see take over the reins at GT. Just curious to read your suggestions.