Maryland Football: Michael Dunn prepares for the NFL Draft

The path to the NFL isn’t as well-paved for some players and Michael Dunn is finding that out first hand.

The Maryland offensive lineman wasn’t invited to the NFL Scouting Combine, which began on Tuesday in Indianapolis. Dunn joined the Glenn Clark Radio Show to discuss his NFL aspirations amongst other topics.

Dunn had a very impressive career during his time in College Park.

The Bethesda native a two-time All-Big Ten Honorable Mention selection (2015 & 2016). In addition, he was a three-time All-Big Ten Academic Selection (2014, 2015, & 2016).

During his interview, Dunn discussed why he wasn’t invited to the annual Combine.

“At the end of the day, I was most likely not going to be invited,” Dunn said. “I had surgery on my shoulder about eight weeks ago. Even if I was in Indianapolis right now, I wouldn’t have been able to clear any of the medical processes. I wouldn’t be able to do anything. I understood that due to that, scouts decided to bring people in that could actually perform.”

Maryland’s Pro Day is set for March 29 and Dunn hopes to be ready to go at that time.

Dunn has been one of the more impressive stories that the Maryland program has seen in quite some time.

The Whitman (Md.) alum walked on to the football team and eventually earned a scholarship. When it was all said and done, Dunn ended up starting 48 games over his four seasons and played left and right tackle in addition to right guard.

“Thinking about my career, it still amazes how I got this far,” Dunn proclaimed. “Coming in as a walk-on with no expectations at all, my only hope was to potentially travel one year. From my freshman to my redshirt freshman year, I came out to training camp ready to go and just proved everybody wrong.”

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Dunn has arguably the best offensive lineman that came through under Randy Edsall. It continues to be a position where the current staff has developed several players into terrific linemen.

Despite dealing with an injury and being forecasted a late round pick in the best scenario, Dunn isn’t letting that get in the way of his NFL dreams.

“My projection is a Day Three guy or undrafted free agent guy. I know I’ll be somewhere come August in training camp. I’ve already been in a place where I’ve had zero expectations and I’ve proved everybody wrong. I’m confident enough in my abilities that I can do the same thing.”

Maryland has had a strong track record in recent years in terms of getting players to the NFL.

In 2015, wideout Stefon Diggs was a fifth round pick by the Minnesota Vikings and defensive tackle Darius Kilgo was a sixth round pick by the Denver Broncos. In 2016, safety Sean Davis (second round, Pittsburgh Steelers), defensive end Yannick Ngakoue (third round, Jacksonville Jaguars), and Quinton Jefferson (fifth round, Seattle Seahawks) were all selected.

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In 2017, Dunn and cornerback Will Likely stand the best chance to be drafted. With the amount of motivation that Dunn has, he could latch onto an NFL roster even if he doesn’t hear his named called in the spring.

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