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OU Pro Day: How Oklahoma DE Ethan Downs Has 'Created Value' Ahead of NFL Draft

After starting three years for the Sooners, taking part in the Shrine Bowl and blowing up at the combine, Downs even got in a little offensive work at pro day last week.

John E. Hoover

Oklahoma defensive end Ethan Downs
Oklahoma defensive end Ethan Downs / John E. Hoover / Sooners On SI
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NORMAN — Ethan Downs had a good time last week working out again for NFL scouts.

When else would Downs get to run routes and catch passes and play offense?

Downs didn’t run and jump for any timings or measurements at OU’s Pro Day. He showed team personnel all he needed to in those areas the week before at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis.

So Downs’ day was laid back — until someone wanted to see what he might look like on offense.

“I just had a team reach out to me, asking about if I could run some routes — fullback, tight end maybe? I don’t know. I might have some hands in the bag, you know? … Wherever you need me, I want to create value for myself and be able and be a versatile athlete.”

Downs didn’t get a whole lot of offensive opportunities as a Sooner. He fair-caught an onside kick to open the Arkansas State game in 2023. And later that season, he hauled in a 21-yard pass from Luke Elzinga on a fake punt at BYU — although that one was wiped out by an offensive pass interference penalty.

Downs also had a fourth-quarter interception that year that should have clinched a win at Kansas, even dragging nearly the entire Jayhawk offense downfield on his runback.

But let’s face it: Ethan Downs is a 6-foot-4, 270-pound defensive end. And that’s where he’ll play in the NFL.

Pretty heady stuff for a kid from Weatherford, OK.

“Living dreams here,” Downs said. “Just give me a shot.”

That’s all Downs wanted from OU four years ago, and he says it’s all he needs on the next level.

After taking part in the 100th East-West Shrine Bowl, Downs certainly showed out at the combine. 

Downs’ official 40 time of 4.69 seconds was 10th among the 18 defensive ends who ran at the combine, while his 10-yard split time of 1.62 seconds was sixth. His vertical jump (34 inches) was 12th, his broad jump (9-feet, 11-inches) was 14th), his 3-cone time (7.58 seconds) was 10th out of 10, and his 10-20-10 shuttle time (4.59 seconds) was seventh out of eight.

But Downs utterly dominated the bench press, hitting 225 pounds 32 times. No other d-end did more than 28 reps. Among all positions (83 total prospects performed on the bench), only Cincinnati guard Luke Kendra’s 33 surpassed Downs.

“Yeah, performance was good,” Downs said. “ .. It was a big workout. So, let that film speak for itself, and enjoy the time being here to talk to scouts. It’s more time for me to interview with coaches and other scouts, rather than getting out and doing drills.” 

Downs said his coaches and teammates seemed impressed with his results on the bench press.

“Shocked, you know?” he said “They texted me, hit me up, called me Big Dog, Big Swole. You know, it was a good time.”

Downs said the combine “wasn’t what I expected it to be” because the vast majority of it takes place behind closed doors, away from the cameras.

“You know, on TV (it’s) super glamorous,” he said. “It's really pretty, all the 40s are a big deal, obviously. But the five days being there, four of it is hospitals and interviews and mental fatigue and all the testing and the early morning drug tests.

Oklahoma Sooners Ethan Downs
Oklahoma defensive lineman Ethan Downs / SARAH PHIPPS/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

“But the days of performance are really cool. And, got to meet a lot of great athletes (from) around the nation, and awesome scouts. It was a good time.”

Downs broke down the nitty gritty of his the combine experience and how it all works behind the scenes. 

”So there's two types of interviews,” he said. “There's formal and informal. Formal are kind of what you would imagine: big camera in your face, and you got a team surrounding you, and it's that one team and they got you up on the whiteboard or watching film, and it's just rapid questions for 15 minutes, right? 

“Informal is more like one-on-one. We're sitting down at the table, and the questions are pretty consistent across each team. They want to know family, background, support system at home, kind of some adversity you faced and overcome, right? What value you bring to a team and how you are versatile on the field. And they want to know if you're able to spot your own weaknesses and see if you are authentic in your answers. 

“Because they already know all the answers, right? They just want to dig and get your perspective on things, to see what kind of character you're going to be in their locker room. You know, they're trying to fit puzzle pieces. So I had several informals. No formals. Typically expect formals with quarterbacks or linebackers who have to know more scheme and coordinate a whole offense or defense, or if guys have red flags, sometimes formals will dig a little deeper and try to get the story from the athletes themselves.”

Downs said that part of the experience was stressful at first, but he soon got comfortable.

“I’m sweating bullets and trying to look good,” he said. “But once I realized they're really just trying to figure out who I am, then I shucked the weight off, (decided to) be authentic, just present myself.” 

Downs will spend the next few weeks ahead of the draft talking to teams individually, perhaps even flying to meet at their facilities. He’s under no illusion that offense is in his future — especially after the last four years at OU, when he was a starting defensive end for three seasons and earned numerous all-conference accolades.

“I think my history here at Oklahoma under Brent Venables is I played versatile across the D-line and some stand-up,” he said, “and so I have some game experience, impact practice experience being in multiple positions on the field and being tasked as an older guy leader, to be able to coordinate the other D linemen, the positions, alignment, all that stuff, blitzes, be able to be aware of the concepts of why we're doing what we do. 

“And I think that has made me valuable or attractive to teams. They're seeing, ‘Where can we fit this guy? And he can play multiple spots. He can lose weight, gain weight, he can stand up, he can drop.’ Apparently, some teams, I guess, are reaching out about offensive stuff — from my high school tape, you know. So again, I've tried to create value for myself for being a versatile guy, and I want to do well wherever I'm at.”

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John E. Hoover
JOHN E. HOOVER

John is an award-winning journalist whose work spans five decades in Oklahoma, with multiple state, regional and national awards as a sportswriter at various newspapers. During his newspaper career, John covered the Dallas Cowboys, the Kansas City Chiefs, the Oklahoma Sooners, the Oklahoma State Cowboys, the Arkansas Razorbacks and much more. In 2016, John changed careers, migrating into radio and launching a YouTube channel, and has built a successful independent media company, DanCam Media. From there, John has written under the banners of Sporting News, Sports Illustrated, Fan Nation and a handful of local and national magazines while hosting daily sports talk radio shows in Oklahoma City, Tulsa and statewide. John has also spoken on Capitol Hill in Oklahoma City in a successful effort to put more certified athletic trainers in Oklahoma public high schools. Among the dozens of awards he has won, John most cherishes his national "Beat Writer of the Year" from the Associated Press Sports Editors, Oklahoma's "Best Sports Column" from the Society of Professional Journalists, and Two "Excellence in Sports Medicine Reporting" Awards from the National Athletic Trainers Association. John holds a bachelor's degree in Mass Communications from East Central University in Ada, OK. Born and raised in North Pole, Alaska, John played football and wrote for the school paper at Ada High School in Ada, OK. He enjoys books, movies and travel, and lives in Broken Arrow, OK, with his wife and two kids.

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