Pittsburgh’s Calijah Kancey sets NFL combine ablaze with 4.67 40-yard dash to record the fastest mark by a defensive tackle for 17 years… as he says he ‘killed it in childhood dream’
University of Pittsburgh defensive tackle Calijah Kancey made history at the NFL combine when he ran the fastest 40-yard dash by any defensive tackle since 2006.
Kancey ran his 40 with an official time of 4.67 seconds with a 1.64 10-yard split.
The six-foot-one 281-pound defensive tackle was Pitt’s first unanimous All-American since Aaron Donald in 2013. Kancey’s numbers also were similar to Donald as his 40 time finished a 100th of a second faster than Donald’s was at the combine.
Kancey’s time was also the second fastest by any combine participant who weighed at least 280 pounds since 2006, behind only Mario Williams (4.66), according to ESPN.
Most draft experts have ranked Kancey anywhere from being a mid first-second round pick leading into the combine, however Thursday’s workout will certainly raise his stock in the eyes of teams and media members.
University of Pittsburgh defensive tackle Calijah Kancey ran 4.67 40-yard dash at NFL combine
He took a video for social media, saying he lived his ‘childhood dream’ and ‘killed it’
Kancey (No. 8) was named Pitt’s first unanimous All-American since Aaron Donald in 2013
While playing at Pitt he displayed a knack for a spark plug on the interior of the defensive line while firing through the neutral zone with quickness and internet.
He has shown the ability to win at the point of first contact due to his built in leverage advantage, shoot gaps, and work off blocks using his slipperiness and flexibility.
The fact that his play style tends to lean towards gap penetration has made him a threat to make plays behind the line of scrimmage against both the run and the pass.
The greatest criticism of Kancey will be his lack of size and arm length, however the same was said of Donald before he became one of the best defensive players in the league.
Meanwhile, Georgia defensive tackle and top NFL Draft prospect Jalen Carter returned to the combine after being booked and released by police amid misdemeanor charges related to a fatal January car crash.
Carter’s sophomore teammate Devin Willock and Bulldogs’ recruiting coordinator Chandler LeCroy were killed in a January 15 car crash after the group, which police say included the defensive tackle, was allegedly racing their vehicles through the Athens streets at the time.
The Athens-Clarke County Police Department secured an arrest warrant for the 21-year-old Carter Wednesday.
Carter is projected to be one of the top players in next month’s NFL Draft.
Kancey had similar testing numbers to fellow former Pitt Panther Donald (No. 99) at combine
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