Ole Miss DT Zxavian Harris led the way for the rest of the Rebels, suiting up to pitch their best skills to the NFL scouts in Indianapolis.
After absolutely shredding Lane Kiffin with his burning truth bomb on his exit, the 330-pounder made it his personal mission to impress the NFL scouts to set the stage for the remaining Rebels on Thursday, being the first one to appear for the on-field drills.
The 6'8" DL did not run a 40 during his on-field drills on Thursday, but still got a commendable total score of 65, the 16th highest among the DLs at the Combine.
He also got an impressive 6.34 on Lance Zierlein's scale, which makes him an "eventual plus starter" prospect.
That isn't too bad for a massive wall of a DT that is coming off an Ole Miss program that was just starting to peak.
There were some strengths and weaknesses that Zierlein further pointed out about Harris in his scouting report.
Zxavian Harris scouting report
"Harris is a disruptive, alignment-versatile interior defender with mismatch traits and untapped potential. Though he lacks the contact balance/hand usage to cleanly control block engagements, he consistently recovers and often reemerges to help finish the play. He often overwhelms single blocks and disrupts run schemes from a gap away."
"He’s a pocket-pushing rusher, but with better hand work he should see a boost in pressure production. While Harris can play 3-,4- and 5-techniques, his best NFL fit might be nose tackle."
Strengths
- Massive with a rare combination of size, length and power.
- Can align at multiple spots in even and odd fronts.
- Uses length to create late separation from blocks.
- Quick block recovery makes him tough to clear from his gap.
- Long lateral stride helps him meet and thwart seal blocks.
- Has more bull-rush upside than he currently taps into.
- Generates knock-back power once he gets rolling downhill.
- Blocked six kicks during his career.
Weaknesses
- High-cut build leads to waist-bending and elevated pad level.
- Inconsistent body control and contact balance at the point.
- Below-average block command and stack/shed on tape.
- Footwork and agility fall below average.
- Rushes with a narrow base and limited moves/counters.
- Needs better hand placement to unlock his bull rush.
In all, the NFL scouts agreed on Harris being a physical monster that NFL teams should play a gamble on, because his massive frame might get in the way of his technique, but nothing that can't be fixed with some NFL-level training.
As of now, the general consencus has Harris as a late Day 2, Round 3 to Round 5 prospect, going off the board as a No. 5 and No. 8 DT in this class, and between 100 and 130 overall on consensus big boards.