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http://www.mlive.com/lions/index.ssf/2017/01/freaky_de_tanoh_kpassagnon_has.html
[video=youtube;1sS0OnaF6Tk]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1sS0OnaF6Tk[/video]
Freaky Villanova DE Tanoh Kpassagnon has been 'the buzz of the town'
MOBILE, Ala. -- Senior Bowl weigh-ins can be, in a word, awkward. There's a few hundred people on hand speaking in hushed tones, if at all, while 20-somethings walk across a stage in their underwear.
Picture Tiger Woods squaring up a tee shot in spandex. And no shirt.
But then Tanoh Kpassagnon strolled onto stage, and the silence was suddenly broken by some unmistakeable oohs and aahs from coaches, scouts and front office executives.
"Don't see that every day," an NFC scout said.
The Villanova defensive end measured just a shade under 6-foot-7, and a muscular 280 pounds that seemed to defy human genetics. He had among the longest arms (34 7/8 inches) here too, and widest wingspan (84 1/2 inches).
"Plane trips, you know, it gets cramped," Kpassagnon would quip later. "Airlines these days are trying to save money."
Kpassagnon's measureables were enough to draw intrigue, and his performance this week solidified it. He's consistently been among analysts' top players during practice, at one point tossing aside Western Kentucky's Forrest Lamp -- one of the top guards prospects here -- like a used Kleenex.
Panthers general manager Dave Gettleman named him one of his three favorite players of the week.
"He's really twitchy for a long, rangy guy," NFL Network draft analyst Bucky Brooks said. "Normally you expect those guys to kind of lumber and labor off the ball, and he doesn't. He has some quickness. He has some special ability.
"He has some special qualities, and he's one of the guys that has been the buzz of the town."
The Lions didn't make any public comments this week, but behind the scenes, they've become intrigued as well. They visited Villanova recently and kept a close eye on him at the Senior Bowl to see how he'd measure up outside of the FCS.
"They told me they'd want me as an outside end, an outside pass rusher (if they drafted me)," Kpassagnon said.
Kpassagnon's mother, Winifred Wafuoyo, is a chemist from Uganda. His father, Patrice Kpassagnon Tagro, is an economist from the Ivory Coast. And his name -- pronounced tawn-o pass-N-yo -- is decidedly African.
"The letters kind of throw people off," he deadpanned. "I think there's too many of them."
But Kpassagnon, born in Kalamazoo, is actually a Michigan kid. He lived there for a couple years before moving with his family to Ohio, then North Carolina, then finally Pennsylvania for most of his childhood. He became interested in football around the sixth-grade, but his mother was initially reluctant to let him play because "she thought dumb people play football."
Once Kpassagnon agreed to keep his grades up, his mother acquiesced. But because of his size, he was forced to play with kids as much as two years older. He was initially a safety because of his speed, then moved to the defensive line around the start of high school.
He wasn't hotly recruited out of Wissahickon High, located in the northern suburbs of Philadelphia, and elected to attend nearby Villanova, where he kept his promise to his mother. He enrolled in Villanova's prestigious business school while earning dual degrees in finance and accounting.
At 6-foot-7 and just 240 pounds, it looked, much like Andy Dufresne, like a stiff breeze would blow him over. He began his career as a tight end before transitioning to defensive end once he started packing on the weight.
Kpassagnon really blew onto NFL radars this past season, when he piled up 21.5 tackles for loss, 11 sacks and was named the CAA's defensive player of the year. Scouts began packing Villanova Stadium, and one game even required excess seating for the press box.
The Lions, who are starved for a pass rush, were among the teams that became curious about the freaky defensive end at a basketball school. They registered just 26 sacks and 71 QB hits last year, and Devin Taylor faltered in his first season as a starer. So the club is looking for somebody to pair with Ezekiel Ansah, another freaky defensive end with African heritage.
Ansah played football for only three years before going through the draft process in 2013, but was able to solidify his lofty stock with a standout performance during the Senior Bowl. The Lions took him fifth overall, and he's gone on to register more sacks than anybody in his draft class.
Kpassagnon, pegged as an early Day 3 pick heading into the week, isn't considered nearly the same kind of prospect as Ansah. But if the buzz growing around him is any indication, that stock could be on the rise.
"He's big, and he's athletic, and what he's shown down here is he can get to the quarterback," Brooks said. "He's light on his feet, he uses his length, he creates problems for edge blockers with his long arms. He's shown ability to make an inside move.
"I believe he's helped himself this week, and there a lot of people are walking away intrigued by what he can bring to the table."
http://www.mlive.com/lions/index.ssf/2017/01/freaky_de_tanoh_kpassagnon_has.html
[video=youtube;1sS0OnaF6Tk]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1sS0OnaF6Tk[/video]
Freaky Villanova DE Tanoh Kpassagnon has been 'the buzz of the town'
MOBILE, Ala. -- Senior Bowl weigh-ins can be, in a word, awkward. There's a few hundred people on hand speaking in hushed tones, if at all, while 20-somethings walk across a stage in their underwear.
Picture Tiger Woods squaring up a tee shot in spandex. And no shirt.
But then Tanoh Kpassagnon strolled onto stage, and the silence was suddenly broken by some unmistakeable oohs and aahs from coaches, scouts and front office executives.
"Don't see that every day," an NFC scout said.
The Villanova defensive end measured just a shade under 6-foot-7, and a muscular 280 pounds that seemed to defy human genetics. He had among the longest arms (34 7/8 inches) here too, and widest wingspan (84 1/2 inches).
"Plane trips, you know, it gets cramped," Kpassagnon would quip later. "Airlines these days are trying to save money."
Kpassagnon's measureables were enough to draw intrigue, and his performance this week solidified it. He's consistently been among analysts' top players during practice, at one point tossing aside Western Kentucky's Forrest Lamp -- one of the top guards prospects here -- like a used Kleenex.
Panthers general manager Dave Gettleman named him one of his three favorite players of the week.
"He's really twitchy for a long, rangy guy," NFL Network draft analyst Bucky Brooks said. "Normally you expect those guys to kind of lumber and labor off the ball, and he doesn't. He has some quickness. He has some special ability.
"He has some special qualities, and he's one of the guys that has been the buzz of the town."
The Lions didn't make any public comments this week, but behind the scenes, they've become intrigued as well. They visited Villanova recently and kept a close eye on him at the Senior Bowl to see how he'd measure up outside of the FCS.
"They told me they'd want me as an outside end, an outside pass rusher (if they drafted me)," Kpassagnon said.
Kpassagnon's mother, Winifred Wafuoyo, is a chemist from Uganda. His father, Patrice Kpassagnon Tagro, is an economist from the Ivory Coast. And his name -- pronounced tawn-o pass-N-yo -- is decidedly African.
"The letters kind of throw people off," he deadpanned. "I think there's too many of them."
But Kpassagnon, born in Kalamazoo, is actually a Michigan kid. He lived there for a couple years before moving with his family to Ohio, then North Carolina, then finally Pennsylvania for most of his childhood. He became interested in football around the sixth-grade, but his mother was initially reluctant to let him play because "she thought dumb people play football."
Once Kpassagnon agreed to keep his grades up, his mother acquiesced. But because of his size, he was forced to play with kids as much as two years older. He was initially a safety because of his speed, then moved to the defensive line around the start of high school.
He wasn't hotly recruited out of Wissahickon High, located in the northern suburbs of Philadelphia, and elected to attend nearby Villanova, where he kept his promise to his mother. He enrolled in Villanova's prestigious business school while earning dual degrees in finance and accounting.
At 6-foot-7 and just 240 pounds, it looked, much like Andy Dufresne, like a stiff breeze would blow him over. He began his career as a tight end before transitioning to defensive end once he started packing on the weight.
Kpassagnon really blew onto NFL radars this past season, when he piled up 21.5 tackles for loss, 11 sacks and was named the CAA's defensive player of the year. Scouts began packing Villanova Stadium, and one game even required excess seating for the press box.
The Lions, who are starved for a pass rush, were among the teams that became curious about the freaky defensive end at a basketball school. They registered just 26 sacks and 71 QB hits last year, and Devin Taylor faltered in his first season as a starer. So the club is looking for somebody to pair with Ezekiel Ansah, another freaky defensive end with African heritage.
Ansah played football for only three years before going through the draft process in 2013, but was able to solidify his lofty stock with a standout performance during the Senior Bowl. The Lions took him fifth overall, and he's gone on to register more sacks than anybody in his draft class.
Kpassagnon, pegged as an early Day 3 pick heading into the week, isn't considered nearly the same kind of prospect as Ansah. But if the buzz growing around him is any indication, that stock could be on the rise.
"He's big, and he's athletic, and what he's shown down here is he can get to the quarterback," Brooks said. "He's light on his feet, he uses his length, he creates problems for edge blockers with his long arms. He's shown ability to make an inside move.
"I believe he's helped himself this week, and there a lot of people are walking away intrigued by what he can bring to the table."
