Underrated Oklahoma Sooners defensive star puts up jaw-dropping numbers at Oklahoma's 2025 NFL Draft Pro Day

The Oklahoma Sooners hosted their Pro Day on Tuesday morning ahead of the 2025 NFL Draft. 14 former Sooners ran through drills and worked out in front of scouts from all 32 NFL teams, hoping to make their NFL dreams come true.

One such player was defensive end Trace Ford, who transferred to the Sooners from in-state rival Oklahoma State ahead of the 2023 season. Ford was a productive pass rusher for the Sooners but didn't receive an invite to the 2025 NFL Scouting Combine. 

Safe to say, he put up a show in front of scouts at Oklahoma's Pro Day. 

Ford kicked the day off with a 10'2" broad jump (81st percentile) and a 36" vertical jump (79th percentile) before following it up with a blazing 4.55 40-yard dash (94th percentile) time and a respectable 4.43 short shuttle and 7.17 three-cone. 

Ford's broad jump and vertical jump would have placed eighth at the 2025 NFL Combine, alongside potential first-round picks James Pearce Jr and Donovan Ezeiruaku. His 4.55 40-yard dash would have been the second-fast time among every pass rusher at the Combine, behind just James Pearce Jr.

Why didn't Ford get invited to the Combine? There are a few reasons.

One, Ford was never a starter for the Sooners. While he was still a key cog, Ford spent both of his seasons in Norman as a rotational backup behind Ethan Downs, Rondell Bothroyd, and R Mason Thomas. If you aren't even starting at the college level, chances are the NFL probably isn't going to be very interested in acquiring you.

Additionally, Ford has suffered some major injuries in his career, particularly back at Oklahoma State. In 2020, Ford suffered an injury that forced him out of a bowl game, and he missed all of 2021. Then, in 2022, he missed the last four games of the season with another injury. That kind of injury situation turns teams off. 

Still, he turned his career around in Norman and helped make some memorable moments as a player who played an underappreciated part in the Sooners' defensive turnaround. 

It still feels unlikely that Trace Ford is drafted despite his testing, but this was a great thing for his outlook and could help him sign somewhere as a priority free agent/undrafted free agent after the draft.