Wisconsin Football Pro Day: Leo Chenal wows on the bench press, secondary shows off its speed and mo

MADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin inside linebacker Leo Chenal made it clear in the days immediately following his decision to declare for the NFL Draft that he had his eye on a record-setting bench press performance when he would participate in the NFL Combine two months later. Chenal set a lofty goal of 42 reps at 225 pounds because it would break the previous Combine record for a linebacker of 41 held by Terna Nande of Miami (Ohio) in 2006.

Advertisement

Given that Chenal had posted video on his Twitter account back in May 2020 — before his sophomore season at Wisconsin — of himself bench-pressing 225 pounds an astounding 40 times, there was considerable reason for anticipation about what he might do with time to train. That anticipation stretched for an extra five days after he skipped the bench press portion of the Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis last Friday because it was moved from the day before on-field drills to the same day to accommodate holding the workouts in prime time for television.

Chenal ultimately finished with 34 reps on the bench press Wednesday during Wisconsin’s pro day inside the McClain Center as his former Badgers teammates surrounded him and cheered him on. And though it wasn’t the 42 he initially hoped to reach, the number continued to demonstrate why his measurables make him such an intriguing NFL prospect.

34 for @chenal_leo 💪 pic.twitter.com/FbmkT468n6

— Wisconsin Football (@BadgerFootball) March 9, 2022

Not only did he record the most bench press reps among Badgers participants, but his 34 reps would have topped all 73 players who attempted the bench press at the NFL Combine. Boston College offensive lineman Zion Johnson led the way in Indianapolis with 32 reps.

“Leo’s a baller,” former Badgers defensive end Matt Henningsen said. “It doesn’t surprise me one bit. He knows what he’s doing. He trains well. He works hard. He deserves every number he gets, including the number that’s going to be on that signing bonus for him.”

Chenal, for his part, said he was not expecting a bench press number under 40 and noted that, “I guess I’ll settle.” But he has risen up mock draft boards and impressed yet again Wednesday in front of 43 scouts representing all 32 NFL teams, as well as the XFL. Chenal ran a three-cone drill time of 6.84 seconds and a 20-yard shuttle of 3.94 seconds. Both marks would have topped all linebackers at the Combine (Cincinnati’s Darrian Beavers ran a 6.91-second three-cone drill, while Baylor’s Terrel Bernard ran 4.25 seconds in the 20-yard shuttle).

Advertisement

Those results came after Chenal wowed NFL personnel and fans alike in Indianapolis with his marks. He ran a 4.53-second 40-yard dash and finished with a 40 1/2-inch vertical jump. His 40 time was seventh-best among linebackers, while his vertical jump tied for second among players at his position. Chenal said Wednesday that he wanted to run a 4.49 40 and leap 42 inches. But the numbers he did achieve were particularly eye-popping considering he was listed at 6-foot-3 and 250 pounds.

“Obviously as teammates of his, I’ve seen how much of a freak he is for a long time,” former Wisconsin offensive lineman Logan Bruss said. “It’s pretty cool for him to show it to the whole world and for everybody to see what we’ve known for all these years.”

Chenal was listed at 261 pounds on Wisconsin’s roster last season and said he got sick during the leadup to the Las Vegas Bowl, which dropped him all the way down to 242 pounds. He said he built back to 250 pounds and felt as though that weight would be best for his body.

“A lot of people kind of underestimated my athleticism,” Chenal said. “That’s fine. They see the tape. I just wanted to show what a guy from Wisconsin can do a little bit. It probably opened some eyes.”

Chenal declared for the NFL Draft following a monstrous junior season in which he led Wisconsin with 115 tackles and 18.5 tackles for loss and ranked second with eight sacks despite missing the Badgers’ first two games because of COVID-19. He was named the Big Ten Linebacker of the Year and earned second-team All-America honors from the Associated Press.

According to Pro Football Focus, Chenal was the highest-graded run defender in college football last season (94.1). His pass rush grade of 91.8 ranked second among FBS linebackers, as did his overall defensive grade of 91.5. When he sought feedback from the NFL Draft Advisory Board, he said he received a third-round draft grade.

Advertisement

Given how well Chenal has performed over the past week, he may not last that long.

Other notable developments from Wisconsin’s pro day:

• Three former Badgers ran sub-4.4-second 40-yard dashes: cornerback Faion Hicks (4.37), wide receiver Kendric Pryor (4.38) and safety Scott Nelson (4.38). Hicks and Nelson had especially good days in multiple events. Nelson’s 3.92-second 20-yard shuttle and 39 1/2-inch vertical both were tops among pro day participants. His vertical jump would have tied with Baylor’s JT Woods for the best vertical among safeties at the NFL Combine.

“I kind of knew that I was going to surprise some people with my numbers and I was blessed enough and God looked over me and helped me PR on pretty much everything besides bench,” Nelson said. “I was looking forward to this to kind of show what I was able to do, and I was able to do very well.”

Hicks, who trained at PER4ORM in Davie, Fla., said he attended Pilates classes daily for the past two months to help him with flexibility as he prepared for his 40-yard dash.

“Every class, I was the youngest one,” Hicks said. “I think other than me, the youngest person was probably like 50 maybe. I had a good time talking to them. It was definitely an experience.”

Hicks said the biggest concern scouts had about him was his speed. He noted that he had heard from some people that they expected him to run closer to a 4.6 40 time. Hicks said he awoke at 2 a.m. the morning of pro day because he was so eager to perform. The first thing he did was get in his running stance.

Hicks said he suffered a torn meniscus in his left knee early in Wisconsin’s season opener against Penn State. He underwent surgery the next day and missed the second game of the season against Eastern Michigan but returned after the team’s idle week in time to play against Notre Dame. He recorded five tackles and four passes defended in that game. Hicks finished the season with 28 tackles and 10 pass breakups. He played in 44 career games with 39 starts and said he decided not to use the extra year of eligibility the NCAA granted players because of COVID-19 since he had put everything he could on tape as a four-year starter.

Advertisement

Nelson, meanwhile, finished fourth on the team with 60 tackles and added 3.5 tackles for loss and six pass breakups. Nelson closed his career with 29 games played and 28 starts.

Nelson and Hicks were not among the 324 players invited to participate in the NFL Combine. Four Wisconsin players received an invite: Bruss, Chenal, inside linebacker Jack Sanborn and tight end Jake Ferguson. Nelson said “it was a little frustrating” to have only two Badgers defenders receive a Combine invite after Wisconsin finished the season ranked No. 1 in the FBS in total defense, No. 1 in run defense and No. 4 in pass defense.

“It was kind of like, ‘All right. How much more can we do?’” Nelson said. “But trying not to focus on that, and that’s what we talked about. Just come out here, do what we can and then just play ball. That doesn’t define anything. So just go out there and control what you can control.”

Hicks said he hoped this year’s class of Wisconsin defensive backs pursuing the NFL, which also includes cornerback Caesar Williams and safety Collin Wilder, can shift how people view the Badgers’ secondary in general.

“I know we’re known for our linebackers and D-line,” Hicks said. “But I feel like this class of DBs has a chance to kind of prove we do have corners here. That’s kind of been the perception here that we’re not athletic, we’re not fast. Even Scotty pulling in a 4.38, a lot of people didn’t expect him to do that. But Scotty had a great career here, Collin had a great career, Caesar had a great career.

“And even the young guys coming up, we just want to change that perception that Wisconsin has good DBs, even with Rachad Wildgoose last year coming out. But definitely just proving people wrong. What a way to leave. The No. 1 defense in the country. So now it’s about going to the next level and proving that we can play at the next level.”

• Henningsen, one of three players on Bruce Feldman’s preseason Freaks List, showed off his athleticism with a vertical jump of 37 1/2 inches. Henningsen, who played in 42 games with 29 starts at Wisconsin, was invited to participate in the East-West Shrine Bowl but didn’t play in the game due to what he described as “a minor injury.” He said he had heard a wide variety of ways in which NFL teams could line him up on the defensive line and said he believed his versatility would be an asset for pro teams.

Advertisement

• Bruss, like Henningsen, has stressed to NFL teams that he could be used in multiple spots on the offensive line. Although most teams see him as a guard, he has told them that he could play all five positions. He started for most of his Wisconsin career at right tackle and took occasional practice reps at center in his college career.

Bruss did not play in the Las Vegas Bowl because of a foot injury and said he wasn’t fully healthy until a couple of weeks ago, in time for the NFL Combine. He said he talked to former Badgers offensive linemen Tyler Biadasz, Cole Van Lanen and David Edwards about the process of preparing for the pros.

Bruss was asked Wednesday about the departure of offensive line coach Joe Rudolph, who left for Virginia Tech in January after spending 11 of the last 14 seasons at Wisconsin, and said he was “a little bit” surprised to learn of the move.

“He was very upfront with us,” Bruss said. “I’m not going to go into too many details about it. But we all understood his decision. He’s been kind of like a second dad to a lot of us here. And during my time, I spent a lot of time with him. Obviously, all the guys here are going to miss him. They’re all thankful for what he gave to them. I really enjoyed my time with him and I’m going to miss him a lot, but I’m sure he’ll do great wherever he’s at.”

(Top photo of Leo Chenal: Tom Lynn / Wisconsin Athletics)

ncG1vNJzZmismJqutbTLnquim16YvK57kmpubHFpaHxzfJFrZmlrX2WGcMPIrJqopqOeu26yzqirm5mcoXqxvs5mm5qxXaGysHnCoZynmZxixLDD0mamp2WknbJursSnmqFloKeytL%2BMrJycp56ZrrPFjKyfqK%2BjYrynsoyiq6xlo6WyprCMmqWdZZ2kv6Z7