Anzalone Continues to Impress at Senior Bowl in Mobile
Friday, January 27, 2017 | Football
Linebacker Alex Anzalone will play in the Senior Bowl on Saturday.
MOBILE, Ala. – Former Florida linebacker Alex Anzalone continues his preparation for the National Football League on Saturday in the 2017 Senior Bowl.
The Wyomissing, Pa. native will play on the South team with kickoff set for 2:30 PM. In addition, NFL Network will broadcast the game.
Anzalone spent this week impressing NFL coaches, general managers, scouts and members of the media in preparation for the Senior Bowl at Ladd-Peebles Stadium in Mobile, Ala.
"It's an awesome experience," Anzalone told the Sun Sentinel earlier this week. "It's the opportunity of a lifetime. It's about doing the best you can and doing what I've done at Florida."
Coming off a broken forearm that cost him the final five games of the 2016 season, Saturday's game provides Anzalone an opportunity to put his durability and health on display.
The 6-foot-3, 241-pound linebacker finished third on the team in tackles with 53, including four tackles for loss and three sacks in his final season at UF. He also recorded a career-high six quarterback hurries, two pass breakups and one fumble recovery. During Florida's 10-4 campaign in 2015, Anzalone appeared in and started the first two games of the season before suffering a shoulder injury that sidelined him for the rest of the season.
Anzalone made a lot of plays this week during the Senior Bowl practices, which has gotten him noticed.
Here's what Pro Football Focus said about the opportunity he has week and what they saw during Day 2 of practice:
It was a frustrating career for Anzalone at Florida, as he came in as a highly-touted recruit, but battled injury and played only 577 snaps over the last two seasons, including 423 last season... At practice this week, Anzalone has been hitting hard in the run game, and he ran with San Diego State running back Donnel Pumphrey on one downfield route. With a smaller sample size than most on the field, this is a great chance for Anzalone to show what he can do this week in Mobile.
In the article below, NFL.com's Bucky Brooks said that Anzalone has stood out this week with his physicality and toughness. In addition, he mentioned that a lot of scouts have been buzzing about him.
Top standouts of #SeniorBowl Day 3 include WRs, @GatorsFB LB, @UCLAFootball DT.https://t.co/FVTroJz1Xk (via @MoveTheSticks + @BuckyBrooks) pic.twitter.com/dCyxoaQ0Mt
— CollegeFootball 24/7 (@NFL_CFB) January 27, 2017
"It's very beneficial to have this opportunity, especially as an underclassman coming out early," Anzalone told GridironNow this week. "I need to get my name out there. Do what I do; Play hard; play fast and show the scouts and coaches what I'm all about."
Meanwhile, safety Marcus Maye, who's working his way back from a shoulder injury he suffered late in the 2016 season, was in Mobile, Ala., this week doing interviews with different teams throughout the week.
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