Everything You Need to Know About the XFL Combine
July 25, 2023 - XFL (XFL) News Release
It's time for the biggest XFL event of the summer.
The first-ever XFL Combine will kick off this week in Arlington, Texas, at Choctaw Stadium. For three days, players will take part in testing, drills and more in efforts to get on the radar of XFL teams as they look toward the 2024 season.
"It's a culmination of all the guys that our league has targeted as some of the best who are still available," XFL senior vice president of player personnel Doug Whaley said. "It's going to be a way for us to really delve into not only the player's ability on the field, but off the field with our interview process."
Here is everything you need to know about the XFL Combine.
What is the XFL Combine?
The XFL Combine is a three-day event where potential players will participate in testing, drills and interviews to put themselves in the best position to join an XFL team next season.
The XFL Combine takes place Tuesday, July 25 through Thursday, July 27. The players will be split up into offensive and defensive players. Tuesday will feature interview sessions and some testing with offensive players, who will then continue with their drills and testing on Wednesday. The defensive prospects will take part in interviews and some testing on Wednesday, while they will go through their on-field paces on Thursday.
"It allows us the time to get to know them as a player, to get some extended testing on them, to interview them, and really be in a much smaller format so that they have the chance to perform at their best and do what they can to earn a chance to play in our league," XFL vice president for football operations David Dykeman said.
Who is attending the XFL Combine?
More than 200 players were invited by the league to attend the XFL Combine. Many invitations were extended to players who attended one of the XFL Showcases held earlier this summer. Other invites were extended to players in consultation with XFL Directors of Player Personnel.
Players attending range in age, experience and background. There are players from Power Five schools and Division II programs. There are rookies fresh out of college and players who have been in NFL training camps. Ages range from 22 to 31, although most are within five years of graduation, Dykeman said.
"I think the opportunity to travel throughout the country, to make it feasible for guys that live anywhere, to be able to get to a showcase that they could get to easily to give themselves a chance to perform at that level separates us," Dykeman said.
What are the XFL Showcases?
The XFL Showcases are events held across the country over the past two months to give potential players an opportunity to demonstrate their skills in front of XFL personnel. The first of six XFL Showcases this summer hosted HBCU players at the historic Clark Atlanta University, the first HBCU in the South. The XFL Showcases that followed were held in Atlanta, St. Louis, Washington DC, Houston and Arizona.
Over 1,400 total players attended the six XFL Showcases.
"We have opportunities for people who think they've gotten passed over to show us what they've got and that's a perfect example," Whaley said. "This is a pathway for them to get into our league."
What is the schedule of events?
Tuesday, July 25
4:30 p.m.-6 p.m. ET: Player Interviews for Offensive Players
6 p.m. ET-10 p.m. ET: XFL Testing, By Position, for Offensive Players
Wednesday, July 26
8:00 a.m. -1:00 p.m. ET: Combine Testing & Drills by Position, for Offensive Players
4:30 p.m.-6 p.m. ET: Player Interviews for Defensive Players
6 p.m. ET-10 p.m. ET: XFL Testing, By Position, for Defensive Players
Thursday, July 27
8:00 a.m. ET-1:00 p.m. ET: Combine Testing & Drills by Position, for Defensive Players
What are the drills players will be participating in?
Players will participate in both traditional tests and positional drills on Wednesday and Thursday morning. Traditional tests include the 40-yard dash, triple jump and the 3-cone drill. Positional drills include route-running for wide receivers, passing drills for quarterbacks and more.
What tests are players undergoing during the night sessions?
XFL players will undergo four tests on Tuesday or Wednesday nightwith some innovative sports technology to provide next-level data for XFL coaches and directors of player personnel.
The four tests will consist of jumps with their hands on their hips, bench press with different weights depending on the position, sprints to measure max speed and max acceleration and a grip strength drill.
Thanks to technology from innovative sports performance companies Catapult Sports, VALD Performance and Vitruve, these tests will provide data never calculated before at a football combine such as peak power during a bench press and grip strength.
The combine is the first step in using the data more holistically around the league.
"Coaches can have information that no other spring league has because now they have information that's going to make the best team for them," said XFL director of player performance Sean Hayes, who spearheaded this part of the XFL Combine.
How are these numbers interpreted?
Since the tests and resulting data are new, it might be difficult to understand what constitutes a great or good or bad number for each of these tests. But Hayes provided some insights of what to look for in certain players.
For skill-position players and defensive backs, he said RSI, or Reactive Strength Index, is an important measure of how "twitchy" an athlete is.
"If I'm an outside-the-box guy - if I'm a skill player, if I'm a slot or a receiver or a DB or running back - look out for RSI. I'm telling you. That is, for me, a direct correlation of how well you can make people miss out on the field. It's how reactive they are," Hayes said.
For linemen, Hayes highlighted concentric impulse, which is the amount of force an athlete generates from their jump prior to lifting off the ground.
"I'm an interior guy, o-line/d-line, I want to look at that concentric impulse. Let's look at the estimated one rep max on the bench press. That's gonna tell me how strong they are," Hayes said.
There is one test where the stats will be straightforward. That will be in the sprint, where top-end speed over 20 miles per hour will be hit by the elite runners.
Who will be evaluating the players at the XFL Combine?
All eight team head coaches - including new Vipers head coach Dr. Anthony Blevins - will be in attendance along with all eight team directors of player personnel.
How can you watch the XFL Combine?
The XFL Combine will be live-streamed on YouTube and Facebook on both Wednesday and Thursday from 10 a.m. ET to 1 p.m. ET. The stream will start at 9:30 a.m. ET with pre-recorded content.
ESPN analyst Sam Acho and 2023 D.C. Defenders defensive back KJ Sails will host the livestream, which will feature exclusive interviews with players, coaches and executives.
Day 1 Stream on YouTube
Day 1 Stream on Facebook Events
Day 2 Stream on YouTube
Day 2 Stream on Facebook Events
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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
