Troy’s Chandler Worthy Preps for NFL Draft
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By Ben Bolton
TROY, AL—Chandler Worthy is one of hundreds of graduating college football players trying to reach the NFL. The wide receiver’s athleticism ranks among the best offensive players in the entire nation.
“Just because a guy is bigger than you, faster than you, stronger than you,” said Worthy. “You don’t have to choose for him to be better than you.I mean, just not letting me put a limit on my mind, not limiting myself.”
However, Worthy’s journey began on defense, where he volunteered to play cornerback to help his high school team. When it was time to choose a college, only one school thought he was good enough to play on offense.
“Coming out, this (Troy) is the only school that offered me for offense because they came to one of my high school games,” said Worthy. “He asked my coach if they could put me on offense, and he did, I got two plays. One was like a 50 yard catch and the other was a 40 yard run. They were like yeah we saw what we wanted to see, we want you on the offensive side of the ball.”
Worthy took advantage of his one shot to play wide receiver in college, turning that audition into a career at Troy where he caught 137 passes for nearly 1800 yards, and 14 total touchdowns.
But now he’s asking for one more chance, and once again, scouts are doubting him. This time the concerns come with something he can’t control. His height.
“Barry Sanders was what, 5’8″, and he was one of the greatest running backs there is,” said Worthy. “I feel like 5’7″ is just a height. You can’t limit a person by things they can’t control. I know I’m willing to put in the work, and I can go as far asyone can go in this draft.”
Once again, Worthy got limited opportunities. He was not invited to the NFL’s Draft Combine, the tryout for the nation’s top prospects. He only got one shot in front of 13 NFL scouts at Troy’s Pro Day.
He ran a 4.34 40 yard dash, which would have been in the Top 10 at the Combine. His vertical and broad jumps both measured better than most top prospects as well.
His performance was enough to catch the eye of a few scouts who think he could be a receiver and play on special teams.
“I’ve talked to a good amount of teams,” said Worthy. “They’ve just told me that anything I can control. I did above and beyond in. Anywhere they are willing to put me at, I’m willing to do anything to win honestly. Whether it’s punt team, kickoff team, wide recover or anywhere.”
With the NFL Draft just days away, all Worthy can do now is prepare to make a team, once he gets the call.
