Gross-Matos Earns Second Round NFL Draft Selection by Carolina Panthers
With the sixth selection in the second round of the in the 2020 NFL Draft, the No. 38 overall pick, defensive end Yetur Gross-Matos learned his new home at the next level.
Former Nittany Lion player and current head coach of the Carolina Panthers, Matt Rhule made Gross-Matos his second selection of the draft.
Read our Yetur Gross-Matos NFL Draft Scouting Profile
Considered one of the top defensive line prospects in the draft, Gross-Matos brings a strong resume into the NFL.
Finishing with 19 sacks for his career, Gross-Matos is 10th all-time at Penn State in the category and 11th in tackles for loss with 37.0. A first-team All-Big Ten selection by both the coaches and media, he finished with 40 tackles, 15.0 TFL and 9.5 sacks to go along with seven quarterback hurries in 12 games of action.
According to Penn State strength coach Dwight Galt earlier this month, Gross-Matos blossomed from a 244-pound freshman into a 266-pounder at his present weight. His 40-yard time dropped from 4.78 seconds as a true freshman down to 4.66 seconds as a sophomore, and finally a 4.64 last year.
Additionally, Galt praised Gross-Matos’ strength attributes.
“Yetur has got some really good explosive numbers that's really going to help him. He's got a 35-inch vertical jump. He's got a 10-foot broad jump. For a big D-end, he's done really well and strength wise, he's got a 340 bench, 370 clean and then almost a 500 squat,” Galt said. “These are all numbers that the scouts have and that the NFL is using as part of the evaluation process.”
Gross-Matos was invited to February's NFL Combine in Indianapolis and participated intermittently, benching 20 reps, notching a 34-inch vertical and broad jumping 120.0 inches. He did not participate in any of the running events.
A four-star prospect from Chancellor High School in Spotsylvania, Va., Gross-Matos chose the Nittany Lions over Alabama, Clemson, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and Virginia Tech. He was a member of the Rivals250 and was the fifth-ranked strong-side defensive end in the Class of 2017.
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