Huskies’ Melifonwu steals the show at NFL combine

Two years after Byron Jones left NFL talent evaluators speechless at the 2015 scouting combine with a world-record leap of 12 feet, 3 inches in the broad jump, it was time for another former UConn defensive back to run and jump his way up the NFL draft.

Obi Melifonwu, who led the Huskies with 118 tackles and four interceptions as a senior, posted the top performances of all the combine participants in both the vertical leap and broad jump on the final day of the event in Indianapolis.

Melifonwu had a 44-inch vertical leap and broad jump of 11-9, just six inches shy of what Jones did in 2015. Melifonwu also finished tied for fifth among defensive backs with a time of 4.40 in the 40-yard dash.

Melifonwu, a safety from South Grafton, Massachusetts, weighed in at 6-foot-4 and 224 pounds making those performances all the more impressive.

It should be noted that three of his four interceptions as a senior came against ranked teams and he averaged more than eight tackles in seven career games against ranked opponents.

Melifonwu had already created a buzz at the practices leading up to the Senior Bowl when he drew praise from the NFL Network analysts on a daily basis and followed that up with a solid effort in the allstar game as well. Since then there has been chatter about Melifonwu working his way from being either a second- or third-round pick to possibly sneaking into the first round just as Jones did in 2015.

Former UConn receiver Noel Thomas posted a 32 ½ inch vertical leap, broad jump of 9-10 and time of 4.63 in the 40 earlier in the week.

GREGORY PAYAN — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS UConn safety Obi Melifonwu is seen before a drill at the 2017 NFL scouting combine Monday in Indianapolis.