Four players with state ties invited to combine
Four players with ties to Connecticut have been invited to the NFL scouting combine.
Boston College running back AJ Dillon of New London, Auburn offensive lineman Jack Driscoll of Madison, TCU offensive lineman Lucas Niang of New Canaan and UConn offensive lineman Matt Peart are among the 337 players invited to the combine which starts on Feb. 23.
Dillon ran for 4,382 yards with 38 touchdowns. He had 20 games with at least 100 rushing yards and four 200- yard efforts in his 35 career games at Boston College.
Driscoll started 20 games in two season at UMass and was Auburn’s starting right tackle for 25 of 26 games over the last two seasons. He started in 13 games against ranked opponents.
Niang started 26 consecutive games and had 27 career starts before a hip injury forced him to miss the final five games of the 2019 season. This is the second straight year a former New Canaan star was invited to the combine as former Boston College defensive end Zach Allen took part in the 2019 event.
Peart started all 48 games over the last four seasons. He began his career as the Huskies’ starting left tackle before shifting to right tackle for the 2018 and 2019 seasons.
Allen is the only Connecticut native to take part in the last three combines. The last time three players who played high school football in Connecticut took part in the same combine was in 2014 when the Norwalk duo of Kevin PierreLouis and Silas Redd and Stamford’s Khairi Fortt took part. This will be the 13th time in the last 16 years that at least one former UConn player took part in the combine with 25 of the last 32 combine attendees who finished their careers at UConn getting drafted.
The offensive linemen and running backs will arrive in Indianapolis for the combine on Feb. 24. The bench press will be held on Feb. 27 with the remainder of the combine events for the running backs and offensive linemen are scheduled for Feb. 28.
JOSEPH, COSTIGAN, SANTOS- KNOX SIGN WITH CFL TEAMS
Former UConn linebacker Junior Joseph, Stamford’s Thomas Costigan and Middletown’s Jovan SantosKnox have been added to the active rosters by the Canadian Football League teams.
Joseph, who made 306 tackles at UConn from 2014- 17, was signed by Ottawa. Costigan, who recorded 285 tackles and 26 sacks at Bryant from 2015- 18, and Santos- Knox, who made 339 tackles at UMass from 2012- 15, were both added to Edmonton’s roster.