The first day of the Senior Bowl got off to a great start with the South roster getting in their first day of practice. The first session was played in shells and shorts with more than a few standouts that did themselves some good out there.

TE OJ Howard, Alabama – Quite possibly the highest drafted player here, OJ Howard was as good as advertised today hauling in one handed catches and displaying a wide receiver-esque skill set that tight ends just aren’t supposed to possess. He has tremendous length, great ball skills and exceptional speed for the position. Howard is going to add a new dimension to the offense he goes to at the next level and will prove just how underused he was in Tuscaloosa. His decision to stay for his senior year and his attendance at this event proves his desire to be the top tight end off the board.

CB Marquez White, Florida State – The Seminoles have a terrific product here in White who has displayed smooth fluid hips, a very high paced back pedal and terrific balance to go along with a flash of ball skills. Marquez White tracks the football very well and simply put, he has a knack for keeping his eyes glued to the quarterback with the ability to cover ground and make up space quickly. He understands spacing and White uses the boundary as an extra defender taking space away from the defender.

DT Dalvin Tomlinson, Alabama – The downside of day one, is there aren’t full pads but the defensive and offensive linemen were going at it during pass drills regardless. Dalvin Tomlinson appeared to win almost every rep with an early rep that went his way against Danny Isidora and a solid rep against Forrest Lamp that he won cutting up inside. He has the pedigree, he comes from a tremendous football program and he showed off strong hands today in drills. Tomlinson if the type of talent that will improve whatever roster he lands on next year.

DE Tanoh Kpassagnon, Villanova – This kid won the weigh or at least has to be in the Top-5 for impressive bodies on the day. He registered in at 6’6”⅞ tall, he racked the scale up to 280, he has 10⅞ hands and all of his weight is quality weight with the guy being totally rocked up at the event. What helps is that he can play on top of looking like of a world beater. Kpassagnon was a terror in drills with his length and big body. He won a number of edge rush drills, he forced holds on him and was just a dominant force bending against those tackles with his great form.

WR Josh Reynolds, Texas A&M – Reynolds showed a lot of quality traits that will make him a good receiver at the next level. He has excellent length and nice range but what stands out is his ability to make adjustments and how quickly he locates the football. The Texas A&M product is very adept at executing the back shoulder and over the shoulder throws with how well he tracks the pass. Reynolds may have not caught every single pass thrown his way but his ball skills and height are an asset. He could potentially have a significant role in the game.

RB Matt Dayes, North Carolina State – Dayes is a complete back with his speed factor and physical running. He has great ball skills, he understands how to chip off pass rushers and he knows when to bail on a route in order to come back to his quarterback. He showed up big time this season and has all the traits of a back that should stick on a roster for a few years. Dayes showed off some nice vision, a chippy sense as a blocker and a real physical edge to his game.

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