University of Connecticut Athletics
Catching up with Matt Peart ahead of the NFL Combine
2/26/2020 10:33:00 AM | Football
Peart Will Perform at the Combine on 2/28
Despite graduating from UConn in December, Matt Peart has been very busy over the last couple of months and will continue to be up until April's NFL Draft.
Last month, the former all-conference offensive lineman participated in the Reese's Senior Bowl, one of the top postseason showcases for NFL prospects.
"It was a great experience," Peart said. "Being on the field with the top competitors in the country is always a great feeling … I learned a lot of great lessons, bonded with some guys, especially with the o-line guys. I consider them to be my brothers moving forward."
Peart said he was able to pick up some new parts to his game by being around some of the best offensive linemen in the country.
"Just understanding how they approach the game and the mentality they have, it's just something that me being a student of the game, [you] just try to take everyone's individual experiences and correlate it into your own so you can become a better player," Peart said.
According to Pro Football Focus, Peart was given the highest grade of any offensive player on his team for his performance in the game. But Peart said he couldn't assess his own performance since he never got a chance to watch the game film.
"It's like every other game, you have the highs and the lows," Peart said. "I wish I had the game film so I could learn from the mistakes I made. Obviously, I definitely made some plays as well. It's like every other game. The highs and lows come with everything."
Peart said he hopes that his performance in that game puts him on the radar of some more NFL teams and showed that he was able to compete with some of the top-tier players in the country.
He will once again be among that level of players this week, as soon after the Senior Bowl, Peart was revealed to be one of the 300-plus players invited to the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis.
"Just being in the conversation with the top athletes in the country is amazing," Peart said. "It's something that I'm really grateful for and really thankful for and just looking forward to it. Just gonna try to use it to the best of my advantage."
Peart has been preparing for the combine by training in Pensacola, Florida, every day to get faster and stronger. He has a crazy couple of months ahead with the combine, meetings and workouts with teams and eventually the draft at the end of April. But Peart isn't looking that far in advance.
"One day at a time," Peart said. "I can't really look at things too far in the distance because I have to focus on what I'm focusing on right now … Right now, my main focus is to come out and just showcase my skills at the combine."
The combine will take place from Feb. 27 to March 1 and will be televised on NFL Network. Peart's workout will be with the offensive linemen on the 28.
