Lucas Oil Stadium welcomes the defensive backs and tight ends to the field on Friday at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis.

NFL Network will televise the workouts at the annual event from 2 to 7 p.m. CST Friday.

The players will have the opportunity to participate in the 40-yard dash, vertical jump, broad jump, three-cone drill, shuttle run and positional drills.

Among the players in the Friday group are seven with Alabama football roots:

• Ole Miss cornerback Trey Amos (played at Alabama in 2023)
• Kansas cornerback Cobee Bryant (Hillcrest High School in Evergreen)
• Alabama tight end CJ Dippre
• UCF cornerback Mac McWilliams (played at UAB in 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023)
• Alabama safety Malachi Moore (Hewitt-Trussville High School)
• Alabama tight end Robbie Ouzts
• Tulane cornerback Caleb Ransaw (Sparkman High School, played at Troy in 2021, 2022 and 2023).

There are 56 defensive backs – 35 cornerbacks and 21 safeties – and 21 tight ends at the combine this year.

The list of defensive backs and tight ends also includes 12 other SEC players:

• LSU cornerback Zy Alexander
• Texas cornerback Jahdae Barron
• Oklahoma safety Billy Bowman Jr.
• South Carolina safety Nick Emmanwori
• South Carolina cornerback O’Donnell Fortune
• Kentucky cornerback Maxwell Hairston
• Texas tight end Gunnar Helm
• Florida cornerback Jason Marshall Jr.
• Texas safety Andrew Mukuba
• South Carolina tight end Joshua Simon
• Georgia safety Malaki Starks
• LSU tight end Mason Taylor

First-rounders on the field

Projections vary, of course, but among the players thought to be possible first-round picks when the NFL Draft starts on April 24 in Green Bay, Wisconsin, who are in the Friday position groups are cornerbacks Travis Hunter of Colorado, Will Johnson of Michigan, Benjamin Morrison of Notre Dame, Shavon Revel Jr. of East Carolina, Jahdae Barron of Texas, Troy Amos of Ole Miss and Azareye’h Thomas of Florida State; safeties Malaki Starks of Georgia and Nick Emmanwori of South Carolina; and tight ends Colston Loveland of Michigan and Tyler Warren of Penn State

NFL.com’s top-graded players at each of the three positions are Colorado cornerback Travis Hunter, who is graded as a “Year 1 starter,” Notre Dame safety Xavier Watts, graded as “will eventually be a plus starter,” and Penn State tight end Tyler Warren, graded as a “Year 1 starter.”

In the books

The best performances on Thursday at the 2025 NFL Scouting Combine include the 4.46-second 40-yard dash by UCLA linebacker Kain Medrano, 40.5-inch vertical jump by Arkansas defensive end Landon Jackson, 131-inch broad jump by Texas A&M defensive end Shemar Stewart, 6.94-second three-cone drill by Boston College defensive end Donovan Ezeiruaku and 4.19-second shuttle run by Ezeiruaku.

The defensive tackles, edge rushers and linebackers were the first players on the field for the measurable drills on Thursday.

Off the field on Friday

The defensive linemen and linebackers are scheduled to participate in the bench press and conduct media interviews.

The defensive backs and tight ends will have their physical measurements taken before hitting the field.

The quarterbacks, wide receivers and running backs will undergo orthopedic exams, conduct media interviews and interview with NFL team representatives

The offensive linemen and specialists are scheduled to undergo medical examinations and conduct media interviews.

Who’s next?

The quarterbacks, wide receivers and running backs hit the turf on Saturday and the offensive linemen and specialists get their chance on Sunday.

The Saturday group includes Texas wide receiver Isaiah Bond (Alabama), Louisville wide receiver Ja’Corey Brooks (Alabama), Oregon wide receivers Traeshon Holden (Alabama) and Tez Johnson (Pinson Valley, Troy), UCF wide receiver Kobe Hudson (Auburn), Auburn running back Jarquez Hunter and wide receiver KeAndre Lambert-Smith, Ohio State running back Quinshon Judkins (Pike Road), Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard (Fairhope), Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe and Memphis wide receiver Roc Taylor (Oxford).

The Sunday group includes Alabama guard Tyler Booker, Ohio State center Seth McLaughlin (Alabama), Alabama A&M offensive tackle Carson Vinson and Jacksonville State guard Clay Webb (Oxford).

Combine bests

The NFL has been holding a league-inclusive combine since 1985, but the records are sketchy for the early years of the event. Profootballreference.com has compiled results since 2000, and these are the top performances in each of the combine drills since then:

• 40-yard dash: 4.21 seconds by Texas wide receiver Xavier Worthy in 2024.
• Vertical jump: 46 inches by North Carolina safety Gerald Sensabaugh in 2005.
• Broad jump: 147 inches by Connecticut cornerback Byron Jones in 2015.
• Three-cone drill: 6.28 seconds by Oklahoma defensive back Jordan Thomas in 2018.
• Shuttle run: 3.73 seconds by Iowa wide receiver Kevin Kasper in 2001.
• Bench press: 49 repetitions of 225 pounds by Oregon State defensive tackle Stephen Paea in 2011.

The three-cone drill is meant to measure a player’s ability to change directions while the shuttle run tests a player’s lateral quickness.

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on X at @AMarkG1.