Dante Olson posts near-record numbers at the NFL Combine
2/29/2020 10:46:00 PM | Football
Dante Olson, meet the world. World, meet Dante Olson.
Former Montana linebacker Dante Olson blew the doors off his NFL Combine opportunity at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on Saturday night, posting one of the top vertical jumps by a linebacker in Combine history and a top-ten broad jump amongst the group in an overall solid day two performance.
Olson caught the attention of the nation early in the evening with a phenomenal 42-inch vertical leap – the second-highest jump of any player so far in this year's Combine, and one of the top-three jumps of any linebacker in Combine history.
The Buck Buchanan Award-winners' eye-popping 42-inch jump was also:
- A full 2.5 inches higher than any other linebacker at the Combine, with the next highest jump at coming in at 39.5 from Mississippi State's Willie Gay Jr.
- Second only to wide receiver Donavan Peoples-Jones of Michigan, who leads all Combine participants with a 44.5-inch jump.
- The third-highest jump by a linebacker in Combine history, trailing Cameron Wake of Penn State's 2005 jump of 45.5 inches, and Davis Tull of Tennessee-Chattanooga's 2015 jump of 42.5 inches.
With the eyes of the pro football world on him, the only FCS linebacker out of 44 at the Combine followed up his vertical leap with a 10' 4" (124 inch) broad jump, which would wind up being the ninth-best jump in the position group and the longest of any of the 22 Grizzlies to ever participate in the annual scouting showcase.
The two jumps combined are considered "elite" amongst Combine pundits for his explosiveness and put Olson's name at the forefront of Combine chatter for the evening.
"This kid is a search and destroy, make every tackle player. He did it quite well at the University of Montana, and to see him jump like that, oh my goodness, I am beyond impressed. I really am," said NFL Network analyst Charles Davis.
Olson then lost momentum at the Combine with a 4.88 second time in the 40-yard dash, but he later made up for the sprint time with a highlight-reel catch covering wheel routes, followed by more top performances in the speed and agility events.
Olson finished the evening with a 7.00-flat speed in the three-cone agility drill, which placed him just out of the top-10 linebackers at No. 13 in the event, and was the second-fasted time ever run by a Grizzly in Combine history behind Jordan Tripp's three-cone time of 6.89 seconds.
In the final event of the night, Olson clocked in at 4.32 seconds in the 20-yard shuttle run to earn an overall prospect grade of 5.87 by NFL scouts.
Olson will now prepare to return to Missoula on April 2 for one more shot at impressing NFL scouts at the program's annual Pro Day.
Former Montana linebacker Dante Olson blew the doors off his NFL Combine opportunity at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on Saturday night, posting one of the top vertical jumps by a linebacker in Combine history and a top-ten broad jump amongst the group in an overall solid day two performance.
Olson caught the attention of the nation early in the evening with a phenomenal 42-inch vertical leap – the second-highest jump of any player so far in this year's Combine, and one of the top-three jumps of any linebacker in Combine history.
LB Dante Olson with a 42-INCH VERTICAL! ⬆️⬆️⬆️@MontanaGrizFB | #NFLCombine pic.twitter.com/9g9qB07Eak
— NFL (@NFL) March 1, 2020
The Buck Buchanan Award-winners' eye-popping 42-inch jump was also:
- A full 2.5 inches higher than any other linebacker at the Combine, with the next highest jump at coming in at 39.5 from Mississippi State's Willie Gay Jr.
- Second only to wide receiver Donavan Peoples-Jones of Michigan, who leads all Combine participants with a 44.5-inch jump.
- The third-highest jump by a linebacker in Combine history, trailing Cameron Wake of Penn State's 2005 jump of 45.5 inches, and Davis Tull of Tennessee-Chattanooga's 2015 jump of 42.5 inches.
With the eyes of the pro football world on him, the only FCS linebacker out of 44 at the Combine followed up his vertical leap with a 10' 4" (124 inch) broad jump, which would wind up being the ninth-best jump in the position group and the longest of any of the 22 Grizzlies to ever participate in the annual scouting showcase.
The two jumps combined are considered "elite" amongst Combine pundits for his explosiveness and put Olson's name at the forefront of Combine chatter for the evening.
"This kid is a search and destroy, make every tackle player. He did it quite well at the University of Montana, and to see him jump like that, oh my goodness, I am beyond impressed. I really am," said NFL Network analyst Charles Davis.
.@danteolson25's 4️⃣2️⃣" vertical jump is the 2nd highest of any player at the #NFLCombine so far this week!#GoGriz #NextLevelGriz #nflcombine2020 pic.twitter.com/Xj9bshFFCV
— Montana Griz Football (@MontanaGrizFB) March 1, 2020
Olson then lost momentum at the Combine with a 4.88 second time in the 40-yard dash, but he later made up for the sprint time with a highlight-reel catch covering wheel routes, followed by more top performances in the speed and agility events.
Olson finished the evening with a 7.00-flat speed in the three-cone agility drill, which placed him just out of the top-10 linebackers at No. 13 in the event, and was the second-fasted time ever run by a Grizzly in Combine history behind Jordan Tripp's three-cone time of 6.89 seconds.
In the final event of the night, Olson clocked in at 4.32 seconds in the 20-yard shuttle run to earn an overall prospect grade of 5.87 by NFL scouts.
Olson will now prepare to return to Missoula on April 2 for one more shot at impressing NFL scouts at the program's annual Pro Day.
Here's a look at how Dante Olson's #NFLCombine numbers stack up amongst all other #GrizFB participants. #GoGriz #NextLevelGriz #NFLCombine2020 pic.twitter.com/iB9Zn71Jtw
— Eric Taber (@erictaber) March 1, 2020
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