Cavaliers perform for NFL audience

Some were expected to be on hand. Others drew strange stares.

As representatives, including the general manager of the St. Louis Rams, squeezed into the confines at Virginia’s practice field, stopwatches and notepads were prevalent.

Player after player — including some Cavaliers long removed from the minds of many locals for various reasons — lifted weights, ran various drills and were monitored by scouts from 29 of the 32 NFL teams at the program’s annual Pro Timing Day.

The most attention, as one might imagine, was centered upon left tackle Eugene Monroe.

“I have been working for four years, so this is the easy part,” said Monroe, as linebacker Clint Sintim brought laughter as he assumed the role of a pseudo reporter.

“Any chance you get to perform in front of teams is a great time. I am happy to have the opportunity to do it again and it brings me one step closer to April 25.”

Cedric Peerman, John Phillips, Kevin Ogletree, Monroe and Sintim all performed at the NFL Combine last month in Indianapolis, making Thursday’s audition yet another clockwork-like experience. It was anything but routine for a collection of players that failed to secure an invite to the Combine, including three that did not don a Virginia football helmet last year.

Antonio Appleby, Jon Copper, Maurice Covington, Alex Field and Byron Glaspy, players from last year’s team, were joined by two players who left the UVa program — quarterback Kevin McCabe and running back Andrew Pearman — and William & Mary quarterback Jake Phillips, John’s brother.

“It went alright,” said Pearman, who left UVa after being dismissed from a trip to the Gator Bowl in 2008 prior to the contest. “Obviously, I thought I could have done better, but I felt really good with the position drills and I felt pretty explosive and pretty crisp.”

Monroe, an All-ACC performer last season, is widely expected to become the first Virginia player drafted. Some NFL gurus have Monroe going as high as No. 1 overall to the Detroit Lions.

“You see those things but you can’t read into it, you can’t pay attention,” Monroe said. “In talking with the teams, you see this media stuff, but they haven’t really constructed their draft boards yet. They haven’t finalized anything.

“You hear it and you hear that information, but with me I just keep working out and keep appearing where I have to and hope it will bring me closer to that day.”

A collection of current players also gathered to watch the festivities, an activity that becomes an afterthought today as Virginia opens spring practice this afternoon.