WESTWOOD — The journey to the NFL Draft is a long and challenging process for any football player, who hopes to fulfill a childhood dream as they interview, work out and meet with NFL teams.
Former UCLA offensive tackle Garrett Digorgio used two words to describe the process. “Speed Dating”.
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“I wouldn’t necessarily say which team was particularly interested in me because it’s hard to say,” DiGorgio said. “All these guys are trying to understand everybody’s story and people are moving up the draft board to see who they want to bring in.”
DiGrogio and teammate Gary Smith III are keeping busy as they transition from life outside of UCLA football and prepare for the NFL draft.
The two went through the process of meeting nearly every NFL team last January at the East-West Shrine Bowl in Frisco, Texas, to attending the NFL Scouting Combine two weeks ago in Indianapolis, Indiana, to being in front of scouts again Wednesday morning for UCLA’s pro day.
“You almost get into a flow state where you’re not really thinking too much and you’re just spitting information out to them,” DiGiorgio said. “You tell them your life story, some of your toughest experiences, some of the little things that they need to worry about if they relate to you.”
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Smith III said he spoke with some former UCLA teammates who have been through the process to help him make it happen, including former UCLA and current Indianapolis Colts edge rusher Leiatu Latu.
“I talk to everybody who’s been to the East and West, everybody who’s been to the combine, ‘What do they ask?’ They just give me (advice) and stuff like that,” Smith III said. “That’s what family is about, that’s what we’re here for, to help each other.”
Smith III said that as he went through this journey, NFL scouts focused on understanding the way he moved, his speed and his personality.
Initially, scouts thought he was a more focused player. In his own words, they actually found him to be a “really cool cat.”
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For DiGiorgio, he said the process was both intense and relaxing, and like Smith III, he relied on conversations with former teammates, including Arizona Cardinals offensive lineman John Gaines II.
Gaines II was selected with the 122nd overall pick in the fourth round of the 2023 NFL Draft.
While Gaines No. 2 plays guard and DiGiorgio is an offensive tackle, his relationship to Gaines No. 2 is very similar in that he projects as a mid- to late-round prospect.
“I feel like they gave me a good feel for informal games, meetings with scouts or other things on the medical side and stuff,” DiGiorgio said. “It’s going to be a series of events and we have to approach it all with the right mindset.”
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His biggest takeaway from scouts is that he’s willing to be a versatile player, as they view him as a swing player who can move from center to guard and tackle on both sides of the ball.
“I just think this is going to be the role that I get going into the league that’s going to keep me in the league long-term, being able to play multiple positions,” DiGiorgio said.
Now that DiGiorgio and Smith III have completed testing, training and scouting interviews, their next step is to stay in shape and have fun until the NFL draft.
