NFL Combine: Dom Franks interview

OU cornerback Dominique Franks left school a year early even though he is projected as a third-round pick. Here is a transcript of his media session Sunday at the NFL Combine:

What was it like going against Sam Bradford in practice at OU?

“I think it really paid off going against Sam and those veteran receivers that we had a couple years ago, going against those guys really prepared me. I always wanted to be a complete corner.”

What are you working on coming into the Combine?

“Really, I already knew. It was technique. I didn’t play with any technique back at school. I was just playing on pretty much ability. I wanted to clean that up and make sure my technique was good, I was coming out of my breaks better and everything like that that goes into your drills.”

What do you bring to NFL?

“I think a great cover corner that can come in and support the run whenever he needs to. I’m gonna play hard every snap. I’m gonna be a great player for you wherever I go.”

Is the adjustment to NFL as much mental as physical?

“Yes sir. I think it’ll be very mental. Those guys are veterans, you know, been in the league 10 or 11 years. They know all the tricks. In college, they kind of give it away a lot because they’re not veteran route-runners. When you go to the NFL, everybody’s a veteran route-runner, so I think it’s gonna be very mental, especially me playing corner, to be able to read those guys’ routes.”

Does college prepare you for NFL?

“It prepared me a lot. Me playing at Oklahoma, playing against some of the best competition that’s out there in college football, I think it’s really gonna prepare me well to go to the NFL and be able to play against those guys and do a good job.”

Did you actually face Bradford in practice?

“Yes sir, I did. Sometimes we did one on ones, where it’s the No. 1 offense against the No. 1 defense. So we got to go against each other a little bit.”

Was that good prep?

Oh, it really was. Sam’s a good quarterback. In my eyes, he’s like a baby Peyton Manning, to me. So going against that guy, it was ideal for me. But I also asked him a lot of questions to be able to let me be a better cornerback.”

Was that like 2 days a week at the start of practice?

“Yes sir, it was. Two days. But even when it wasn’t doing that, I was asking Sam, ‘What are you reading before you’re hiking the ball? Are you looking at the corner?’ He’d tell me, ‘Yeah, I’m looking at the way he’s standing,’ things like that, just little things that he could tell me to help me in my game so I can be a better cornerback.”

What about your experience here so far?

“Today, I woke up about 4:30 this morning. I had a drug test, had breakfast, then we came in and weighed in. I was 5-11, 194. So it’s just been doing really a lot of tests, things like that. Now I’m done. I gotta do the media and I’ll be done for the day.”

When will you run?

“I run Tuesday morning.”

“What do you hope?”

I want to go low 4.3. Electric.

Low 4.3? Not a sub-4.4, but, just to clarify, a low 4.3?

“I want to go a low 4.3. That’s my goal.”

Is it true you said you would run a sub 4.0?

“What? Sub-4? Uh-uh. That’s kind of fast! I never said that. I wish I was that fast. Maybe I’d be in the Olympics if I was that fast.”

Can you walk us through your decision to leave early?