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Hawks At The NFL Combine: James Morris, Anthony Hitchens and Christian Kirksey's Results

The NFL Combine got started in Indianapolis and three Hawkeyes tested on the third day. Let's see how they did and how they compare to their peers.

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Reese Strickland-US PRESSWIRE

THE NFL COMBINE GOT STARTED SATURDAY. Five Hawkeyes will participate in the four day event in Indianapolis, Indiana. Our good friends at NEPatriotsDraft.com are collecting the data. Let's see how the last three Hawkeyes to test finished.

JAMES MORRIS

HEIGHT WEIGHT ARM HAND 1ST 40-YARD 2ND 40-YARD 40-YARD OFFICIAL
6'1" 241 30 3/4" 9 1/8" 4.81 4.75 4.80
10-YARD DASH BENCH VERTICAL BROAD 3-CONE SHUTTLE 60-YARD
1.62 18 34.5" 117" 6.94 4.36 N/A

ANTHONY HITCHENS

HEIGHT WEIGHT ARM HAND 1ST 40-YARD 2ND 40-YARD 40-YARD OFFICIAL
6'0" 240 32 3/8" 9 3/8" 4.72 4.62 4.74
10-YARD DASH BENCH VERTICAL BROAD 3-CONE SHUTTLE 60-YARD
1.57 23 31.5" 116" 7.15 4.45 N/A

CHRISTIAN KIRKSEY

HEIGHT WEIGHT ARM HAND 1ST 40-YARD 2ND 40-YARD 40-YARD OFFICIAL
6'2" 233 32 3/8" 9 3/8" DNP DNP DNP
10-YARD DASH BENCH VERTICAL BROAD 3-CONE SHUTTLE 60-YARD
DNP 16 32" 122" DNP DNP DNP

OKAY. So Christian Kirksey didn't participate in a number of the drills. I'm not certain if it's due to injury or he's opting to perform these drills at Iowa's Pro Day in late March. I assume it's a slight injury.

None of the Hawkeyes did anything to hurt themselves. Anthony Hitchens had a 4.74s 40-yard dash time which is somewhere in the middle of the linebacker group. He also had a 1.57s and 1.58s 10-yard split which is excellent compared to his peers. His 1.57s puts him sixth best in the group.

Like Hitchens, James Morris ran an average 40-yard dash (4.80s). Morris excelled in the 3-cone drill with a time of 6.94s showing off his quick feet and agility. Morris was one of eight linebackers to record a sub seven second time in the drill. His time is fifth best of the linebacker group.

HERE'S A SHOT OF MORRIS' QUICK FEET.

LAST WEEK, WE LOOKED AT SOME COMBINE NUMBERS FROM FORMER HAWKEYES. So, how do these guys compare? Well, James Morris' sub seven second 3-cone drill is better than all of the linebackers listed (Greenway, Hodge, Angerer, Humpal, Edds). Anthony Hitchens' 10-yard split is second best only to Mike Humpal's 1.53s in 2008. Edds and Angerer where just a few ticks of a second faster in the 40-yard dash too (4.62s and 4.71s).

Anthony Hitchens had a very comparable day to that of former Hawk and Green Bay Packer third round draft pick Abdul Hodge. He's an inch shorter than Hodge and middle linebacker isn't his natural position. He'll likely make the switch in the league if he's drafted in the late rounds.

James Morris is closest to Pat Angerer's Combine numbers. Angerer was a second round draft pick of the Indianapolis Colts. Angerer has a half an inch in height over Morris. He also boasted a faster 40-yard dash time and more bench reps. Morris is a half inch off in the vertical jump but showed more power in the broad jump and quickness in the 3-cone drill.

SO, IOWA'S LINEBACKERS ARE FOR SURE SECOND AND THIRD ROUND DRAFT PICKS, RIGHT? Probably not. Obviously, there's more to a draft pick than combine numbers. Scouts will go to the tape to find their flaws. I'm a tad biased but I didn't see anything in the numbers that hurts this Hawkeye trio come draft day. If anything, Morris and Hitchens may have moved up on some draft boards.

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