Everything was going according to plan for North Dakota State defensive end Derrek Tuszka. He finished his Bison career in January with a third straight FCS national title while earning multiple First Team All-American honors. Tuszka immediately traveled from Texas to Florida for practices leading up to the East-West Shrine Bowl, where he impressed NFL personnel in attendance.
From there it was off to Denver to train for the NFL Combine, held from Feb. 23 to March 2 in Indianapolis. Tuszka impressed once again at the combine, testing as one of the best athletes in his position group. He returned to Denver, where the plan was to continue training at Landow Performance until the draft.
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That's when he was thrown a curveball.
With the spread of the coronavirus disease, gyms began to shut down in Denver. Rather than being stuck in an apartment in an unfamiliar city, Tuszka and his NDSU teammate Ben Ellefson (a pro prospect at tight end) decided to drive back to Fargo.
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The NFL Draft process has been disrupted with Pro Days getting canceled and the NFL prohibiting teams from pre-draft prospect visits. This especially hurts players coming from the FCS who have limited chances to be in front of scouts. Thankfully for Tuszka, his opportunity to perform at the combine has been massive.
“I think the combine was a huge thing for me," Tuszka told HERO Sports. "It definitely brought my draft stock up. Both myself and my agent have been hearing from a lot more teams [compared to before the combine]. I have some FaceTime visits set up with some teams. The interest has definitely gone up since then, which is great. But with everything going on, it’s kind of a pain. We just have to adjust and make do with what we can do because there’s no visits or private workouts anymore. It’s just a matter of film, numbers at the combine and these FaceTime visits.”
Tuszka's film doesn't lie. He had a combined 40.5 tackles for loss and 28.5 sacks in his final three seasons as part of a rotating DE group. He certainly has the size at 6-foot-5 and 251 pounds. But what's critical for FCS players, who face the level of competition question mark, is testing well athletically.
That's where Tuszka has seen his draft stock sore.
His numbers at the combine and where it ranked among defensive linemen:
- 4.79-second 40-yard dash — T7th
- 33.5-inch vertical — 5th
- 120-inch broad jump – T6th
- 6.87-second 3-cone drill – 1st
- 4.34-second 20-yard shuttle – 3rd
Draft Scout has bumped Tuszka up to the 18th best DE prospect and a projected sixth-round draft pick.
Not bad for a guy who played 9-man high school football in Warner, S.D., a town of about 500 people. Like a lot of guys coming from the FCS who are ready to turn pro, the FBS didn't see that potential five years ago.
“NDSU does a great job seeing the potential in athletes," Tuszka said. "A lot of schools overlook these guys because it’s maybe not the body type for a certain position. But NDSU will take them, put them through coach [Jim] Kramer’s program and develop them. And then just the mentality that everyone at NDSU has with ‘how can I help this team succeed.’ Everyone finds their role and owns it. That’s what NDSU does so well, is putting guys in position to be successful.”
NDSU has also done well in putting guys in the NFL. Tuszka looks to be the sixth NDSU player drafted since 2014. Until then, he'll continue to improvise and find ways to stay in shape.
“A lot of push-ups and a lot of sit-ups," Tuszka said. "I have access to a few free weights as well. You have to modify some of the stuff. But I’m doing alright and I’m excited for what’s to come.”
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NEXT: Top 2020 NFL Draft Prospects From The FCS
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