Something extra was in Cole Talley’s step as the minutes ticked away to Tuesday afternoon.
Talley, Army’s kicker, knew he was presented with an opportunity like no other to compete in front of NFL scouts at Army Pro Day.
And, the senior from Rockwall, Texas, wanted to make the most out of it. Talley wanted the full experience of the mini-combine with no regrets. He wasn’t going to only kick.
“I went into it with the intention of doing every event – the bench (press), the vertical jump, the 40-yard dash,” Talley said. “But based on the reaction that I was getting when I was doing them, I don’t think it’s typical of specialists to do that kind of thing.”
Talley isn’t your typical college kicker. He worked with Army’s defensive linemen in the weight room. One of the scouts joked around with Talley about running receiver routes.
Talley’s favorite event of the Pro Day – the bench press. He pumped out 14 reps of 225 pounds.
“For a kicker, I think that’s not too bad,” said Talley, who weighs 205 pounds. “The weight room has always been one of my favorite aspects of the game. There’s that stigma that’s around the specialists that ‘they’re not athletic. Under coach (Sean Saturnio), we’ve taken that and used it as a driving factor.
“I’ve taken to that and it’s almost a little bit annoying. It’s become my personality. I love that stuff.”
Talley worked with Army assistant strength and conditioning coach Jacob Riedel on an Olympic program with some power cleans. Talley’s leg strength could catch the attention of NFL scouts. Thirty-seven of Talley’s 49 kickoffs went for touchbacks in 2023.
Talley booted field goals off a kicking stick (no holder) inside the Foley Athletic Center with scouts from nine NFL teams on hand and hit kickoffs outside.
“I thought (it) went pretty well overall,” Talley said. “I’m not going to lie I went into Pro Day not really expecting those (combine) events to put a lot of weight on my legs. But, it really did. It makes sense why specialists don’t do (the combine events) all of the time. You live and learn.”
Talley, who has branched infantry upon his West Point graduation in May, doesn’t know what his professional football pursuits will hold. If his Pro Day leads to an individual team workout, so be it. He’s embraced his future in the Army.
“I wasn’t expecting much of an opportunity to be frank,” Talley said. “But, I figured in 20 years, I would be really upset at myself if I didn’t at least try. I really, really want to be part of the Army and I’ve waited a long time. I really want to be a platoon leader.
“If nothing works out with (football), I will be completely happy,” Talley said. “I love the Army. I love this place that I went to and I’m really excited about the future no matter what path it goes in.”
