INDIANAPOLIS—
Football was his future, but track and field was his passion.David Pender got his ride to Purdue off his abilities as a cornerback at Charlton County High School in Folkstown, Georgia, but it was running that was as big apart of his soul.
"Growing up I was always the fastest guy," said the former Boilermaker. "I ended up winning eleven state titles in track in high school, so speed was always one of my strongest assets."
Four years and college football career later, its just as important for Pender as it was back in high school, and now it his trademark skill that he'll try to show off during this year's NFL Scouting combine.
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"Speed is definitely one of my biggest assets along with my athleticism along with my ability to jump," said Pender of what he hopes to show teams during his workouts. "To go up and defend the deep ball things like that."
Its his ability to get places quickly on the field that made him an effective pass defender, especially during his senior season at Purdue. His 13 deflected passes were the most in the Big Ten in 2009, which brought him to 33 in his Purdue career.
"Being able to play man-to-man coverage from a press alignment or an off alignment," said Pender, who says his speed makes that possible. "Any type of man-to-man coverage is one of my strongest assets as well."
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The catch for Pender as he tries out for the NFL is trying to add some weight to his frame without affecting his speed. To do this, the cornerback said he's developed a new eating plan with a dietitian during the off season along with a few changes to his lifting programs.
At the same time he's keeping his own tabs on his 40-yard dash time, which he hopes to put in the low 4.4 second range by the time he leaves Lucas Oil Stadium
"After every workout I try to go out, I run a few strides, I do some different speed work even if its with sleds or bungees to help me maintain that initial burst and that overall speed," said Pender.
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So far this weekend, the cornerback has gotten good news on one end, as he weighed in a 180 pounds, six above his playing weight during the 2009 season at Purdue. Pender also got some good news from the tape measure as well.
"Once he called out six feet, I was like 'Ah, now I can relax now,'" said Pender. "Went to the scale, 180, another relief so I'm glad that it all worked out for me."
