Clemson's Nate Wiggins calls his shot: 'I'm probably going to run high 4.2s'
The NFL Draft Scouting Combine began on Thursday at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis and first up for Clemson were defensive tackles Tyler Davis and Ruke Orhorhoro, defensive end Xavier Thomas, and linebacker Jeremiah Trotter Jr.
Trotter only participated in the 3-cone and 20-yard shuttle drills, choosing to set his 40-yard dash, bench press, and broad jump marks later at Clemson's Pro Day.
Davis, Orhorhoro, and Thomas were full go and each was among the best in the 40-yard dash.
Orhorhoro sprinted to 4.89 ( fourth-best at DT) and Tyler Davis clocked 5.02 (ninth-best) while Thomas ran a 4.62, placing him fourth-best at DE.
Orhorhoro's 10-yard split of 1.67 seconds was also No. 2 for DTs.
The defensive backs and tight ends are up next on Friday at 3 p.m. EST and speedy junior cornerback Nate Wiggins is the lone Tiger in the groups.
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The 20-year-old Atlanta, GA native, who is projected to be a first-round pick, sat down with NBC: Pro Football Talk hosts Mike Florio and Chris Simms ahead of Friday's events to discuss his draft stock and his time at Clemson.
On what time he could run in the 40-yard dash:
“I'm probably going to run high 4.2s. I'm calling it right now.”
On head coach Dabo Swinney saying he needed to mature in 2021 and what he learned from that year:
“I can say going into my freshman year. I just had to adapt to the college. Coming out of high school -- parents always did everything for you. So, when I got to college, it was hard for me to have time management. I feel like I needed that year because it made me the man I am today. I'm more accountable.”
On where he can improve on the field:
“I can get better at being more physical at the line of scrimmage, tackling, and run support.”
On if there is one receiver in the NFL that he lines up against and might say to himself, 'I hope this works out':
“I never have a mindset like that. I just go into the game -- I'm a lockdown corner.”
On who was the toughest receiver he faced in college:
“A.T. Perry. He made me the man I am today. It was my sophomore year at Wake Forest and just going into the game I'm thinking, I'm not going to get caught on. I had a lot of pass interference calls.”
On what he will buy for himself with his first NFL check:
“I am not buying myself nothing. I'm going to buy my mom a car and a house. I'm going to give back to my foundation (Wiggs World Wide Foundation - is committed to improving the lives of young people by supporting underprivileged communities worldwide). I want to give back to my community. I just know how I came up, I didn't have nothing -- so I want to give back to people who came up like me.”
On why Clemson hasn't made the playoffs the past three seasons:
“I can say that nothing changed. It was a team thing. We're not playing together. One game the defense might have a good game and the offense a bad game. Next game, [it's the opposite]. We weren't consistent enough.”