7 Mid-American Conference players invited to 2022 NFL Scouting Combine

The National Football League released their list of prospects invited to their annual Scouting Combine on Wednesday afternoon, naming 324 total players for the public evaluation period set to begin in early March in Indianapolis, Indiana’s Lucas Oil Stadium.

It’s a return to normal operations for the league, as they went through a virtual scouting combine set-up in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Amongst the 324 names listed are seven players from the Mid-American Conference, who are all hoping to state their cases in front of NFL scouts both in interviews and individual drills.

The seven invites for the 2022 Combine is down slightly from last season, when eight former MAC players were invited to the NFL’s virtual scouting combine. Both those numbers are greatly increased from just two invites in 2020, while nine were invited in 2019, and five were invited in 2018.

[The prospects below are listed by alphabetical order of school, then alphabetical order by last name:]

• Luke Goedeke, IOL/OT, Central Michigan

Goedeke was a solid contributor to the right tackle position for two seasons in Maroon and Gold after initially starting his collegiate career as a tight end at D-III Wisconsin-Stevens Point. Goedeke was named first-team all-MAC offensive line in 2021, leading one of the nation’s most balanced and dynamic offenses, and was praised for having excellent hand technique and strength despite being on the smaller end for a tackle.

Standing at six-foot-five, 310 lbs., Goedeke projects to be a potential guard option at the professional level due to his arm and hand size. Prior to sustaining a hamstring injury, Goedeke was projected to try out at all three offensive line spots at the Senior Bowl, including center. He could get some looks as a Day 2 or 3 prospect with a good Combine due to his potential positional versatility and technique.

• Bernhard Raimann, OT, Central Michigan

Raimann has been a fast riser throughout the 2022 Draft cycle, going from a Day 3 project tackle to a potential Top 5 tackle in the class, projecting in the late-first round in most mock drafts.

Raimann, like fellow tackle Goedeke, was a first-team all-MAC selection at tackle in 2021, and looked the part, standing at six-foot-seven, 305 lbs. He displayed explosive strength and punishing drive despite the lack of experience as an offensive lineman, a position he picked up in 2020 after starting his CMU career as primarily a blocking tight end.

Raimann’s strength is in run blocking, finishing second amongst eligible collegiate tackles in run block rating by Pro Football Focus. A Senior Bowl participant, Raimann saw a lot of work with the second-string American team, behind Trevor Penning at the left tackle spot. He is an older prospect, nearing 25 on Draft Day, but is seen as a potential high floor prospect who can contribute immediately.

• Dustin Crum, QB, Kent State

Crum was one of the most successful Kent State quarterbacks to ever take the field in Blue and Gold, ending his career by leading the Flashes to their first two bowl appearances since the 1970’s, including their first-ever bowl win in the 2019 Tropical Smoothie Bowl.

Crum made his legacy on being a great improviser with the awareness to keep the drive alive in Sean Lewis’ hybrid spread option offense, finishing his career with 7,471 passing yards, 55 touchdowns and 12 interceptions (with six of those coming in 2021) on 66.7 percent completion rating, while also running for 2,071 yards and 24 touchdowns (with 12 of those coming in 2021.)

A first-team all-MAC selection in 2020, Crum has a strong arm, capable of hitting targets over 50 yards downfield, and shows touch on short routes as well, making his ability to scramble all the more dangerous. However, he clearly struggled in the East-West Shrine Bowl game under center, which is something he wasn’t asked to do in his five years at KSU, fumbling twice on snap and handoff errors. He has the size (six-foot-three- 207 lbs.) and instinct to find a niche at the professional level, but he will have to have a very impressive Combine and Pro Day to ensure being drafted.

• Dominique Robinson, EDGE, Miami

Robinson is an absolutely eye-popping athletic prospect at EDGE, with an 82-inch wingspan, a 34-inch vertical jump and a 4.62 40-yard dash while standing at six-foot-four, 254 lbs. Robinson is yet another another intriguing positional conversion prospect from the MAC, switching from wide receiver to edge rusher in 2020 after previously being recruited to Miami as a three-star dual-threat quarterback.

His football acumen, combined with raw film, has firmly placed Robinson in the draft conversation after a 28 tackle, 8.5 tackle-for-loss, 4.5 sack performance in his only full season along the defensive line. His Senior Bowl performance was admirable as well, showing a great first step and instinct for the big play against what was considered a stacked National Team offensive line throughout practice sessions and one-on-one drills.

• Tycen Anderson, SAF, Toledo

Anderson was a steady presence in the Toledo defensive backfield for five seasons, starting from his true freshman year onwards, and finished as one of the most productive safeties in recent memory for the Rockets.

The native Toledoan finished his career with 237 total tackles, nine tackles-for-loss, two sacks, two interceptions and 21 passes defensed in five seasons. His breakout year was 2019, collecting 84 tackles, two tackles-for-loss and five pass breakups. He followed it up with an impressive 2020 season, being named to the second-team all-MAC squad for a 34-tackle, one tackle-for-loss, one sack, four passes defensed effort in the six-game calendar.

Anderson, who stands at six-foot-two, 210 lbs., displayed excellent closing speed and run fit at the Senior Bowl, and with a good Combine, could find himself drafted in Day 3. He currently projects to be a special teams contributor at the professional level, with rotational safety potential.

• Kaleb Eleby, QB, Western Michigan

Eleby had a productive career at WMU despite a lack of conference hardware, picking up 6.068 passing yards for 45 touchdowns and 11 interceptions in 24 starts over three seasons. 2018 saw Eleby overtake the starter midway through the season, before getting injured in the next season. Eleby came back in 2020 as the incumbent starter and posted one of the most efficient seasons in the NCAA, with 1,699 yards, 18 touchdowns and two interceptions in six games, finishing third behind future NFL Draft picks Zach Wilson and Mac Jones in passer rating.

Eleby earned third-team all-MAC for his 2020 campaign, and followed it up with a second-team appearance in 2021 after posting a 3,277 yards, 23 touchdown and six interceptions on a 63 percent completion rating. That’s always been the case with Eleby: he is an efficient, intelligent quarterback who gets the ball where it needs to go, even if he doesn’t offer much of a running threat outside of short-yardage situations. He has the requisite arm talent and processing ability (which was frankly underused in the Tim Lester offense) to land on an NFL roster in Day 2 with a good Combine.

• Skyy Moore, WR, Western Michigan

Moore was a revelation at the receiver position for the Broncos, finding great success in the RPO-centric WMU offense in his three seasons at receiver, finishing his WMU career with 2,473 receiving yards and 16 touchdowns on 170 receptions.

Moore has been a contributor since his true freshman year, when he finished first-team all-MAC after a 51 reception, 802 yard season with three touchdowns, becoming the first MAC player since Roger Lewis (2014) to collect such an accolade. Moore broke out in full in the 2021 season, pulling down 94 receptions for 1,283 yards and 10 touchdowns to pace the Broncos receivers en route to another first-team all-MAC nomination.

Moore made his hay in yards after catch and route running, utilizing a five-foot-ten, 195 lb. frame to attack the middle of the field with crisp routes and position himself to get yards. In all three seasons, Moore averaged 13.6 yards per catch or more, an incredible statistic considering his usage rate in the offense. Even with former second-round pick D’Wayne Eskridge on the roster, Moore still averaged 15-plus yards per catch in both 2019 and 2020.

He’ll have intrigue around him as a Day 3 prospect in a stacked wide receiver class on potential alone, though he will have to pick up on how to play special teams if he wants to stick around at the professional level.

The NFL Scouting Combine is set to take place from March 1 to March 7, with all sessions available for viewing on NFL Network.