Sun Belt Sends Five to the NFL Combine

The invites for the NFL Combine in Indianapolis are officially out and it should be a quiet draft season for the Sun Belt. The league sent a FBS conference-low five players to the biggest NFL Draft event. It’s a strange year for the league as co-champs Appalachian State and Arkansas State didn’t send a single player.

But with a lot of talent returning to the conference, we should see this number spike up next season. Here we’ll give you each participant and tell you a little bit about their game.

Gerald Everett TE 6’4” 240 lbs. South Alabama

The highest rated prospect for the Fun Belt hails from Joey Jones’ program down in Mobile. The former UAB Blazer put up monster numbers in 2015 and 2016 as he a was first team all-conference performer. Everett grabbed 12 TDs in those two years as well as 90 total catches. He spent his first season at Hutchinson CC after spending most of his high school career as a basketball player. Everett is still pretty raw but his athleticism makes him an intriguing prospect. CBS has Everett as the fifth best overall TE and coming off the board on the second day in the second or third round.

Antonio Garcia OT 6’6” 293lbs Troy

The big guy out of Georgia was as dependable as you could get at left tackle for Troy. He was easily the best offensive linemen in the league this past fall and was a key cog in the conference’s top scoring offense. Garcia suffered a knee injury his freshman season could scare some NFL teams away, but his tape should quickly turn those fears into smiles. Garcia was a first team all-conference selection this past fall and his athleticism is extremely advanced for an offensive tackle. CBS has Garcia as the sixth best overall tackle and coming off the board in the second or third round.

Elijah McGuire RB 5’11” 209 lbs UL Lafayette

Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images

McGuire galloped for over 4,000 yards in his four-year collegiate career and was the conference’s player of the year his sophomore season in 2014. Last year McGuire showed how incredibly durable he was by carrying the rock 232 times in 13 games. The Houma, Louisiana native has shown some versatility by being able to catch the ball out of the backfield and has been productive ever since he showed up on campus. CBS has McGuire as the 18th best back and coming off the board in the fifth or sixth round.

Austin Rehkow P 6’3” 213 lbs Idaho

Rehkow was a special talent for the Vandals as he handled both the kicking and punting duties for Paul Petrino’s program. Rehkow led the FBS in punting average as a frosh in 2013 and was a third team All-American as a sophomore in 2014. Rehkow has shown excellent ability as a kicker and was one of the most dependable players in the Sun Belt during his collegiate career. CBS has Rehkow ranked as the top punter and being selected in the fifth or sixth round.

Robert Davis WR 6’3” 220 lbs Georgia State

Georgia State’s all-time leading receiver got a somewhat surprising invite here but he has some measurable that you just cannot teach. Davis recorded over 900 yards in each of his junior and season seasons and was easily QB Conner Manning’s favorite target. Davis is projected to be an undrafted free agent, but a big showing in Indianapolis could vault him up the charts.