FAYETTEVILLE -- Because they aren't big-time touted pro prospects, University of Arkansas fifth-year senior graduates Davyon "Sleepy" McKinney and DeMarcus Hodge weren't tempted to train exotically afar from Fayetteville for their long-shot bids to make the NFL.
By continuing to train under Razorbacks strength coach Ben Herbert, it seems they big-time improved their presence from unknown to at least a blip on NFL scouts' radar.
Hodge, a defensive tackle from Monroe, La., never started until this past season, after he slimmed down by 32 pounds with Herbert's help. McKinney, a reserve defensive back from Forrest City, returned last season after major surgery from a 2014 foot injury.