SOUTH BEND, Ind. (670 The Score) -- About a month to the night he's expected to be selected in the top 10 of the NFL Draft, Notre Dame star safety prospect Kyle Hamilton was focused on split seconds.
Hamilton ran a 4.56 in the 40-yard dash during his pro day workout Friday at Notre Dame, a time that marked improvement from his 4.59 clocked at the NFL Combine.
“I still didn’t do as well as I wanted to,” Hamilton said, pointing to his goal of a 4.47 time.
Forty times will seem inconsequential on April 28, when Hamilton will be a surefire first-round draft pick. Really, it didn’t matter much to the scouts on hand who already recognized Hamilton as a rare talent at safety.
But Hamilton didn’t reach this point by settling. He won’t be satisfied by anything short of fulfilling his own expectations. It’s part of the competitive mindset that helped make him an All-American for the Fighting Irish.
Yes, he's even competitive with how high he gets drafted.
“I feel like that’s everybody’s mindset within this whole process,” Hamilton said. “If you’re predicted undrafted, you want to compete to go drafted in the sixth, seventh, whatever it may be. If you’re a top-10 guy, you want to compete to get in the top five.
“At the end of the day, that’s what it’s all about.”
Hamilton had 138 tackles, eight interceptions and 24 pass deflections over 31 career games at Notre Dame. A knee injury in October cut his junior season short, but he had already emerged in the eyes of NFL scouts.
Hamilton seems certain to be drafted in the top 10 and could be one of the first five players selected. He knows that he’s living a dream but admitted it’s hard to hold that perspective in the present.
“It will probably set in a long time from now, whenever I actually sit back and realize I went through this whole process that I've been looking up to since I was five years old,” Hamilton said. “Going to the combine, experiencing all this, going to the draft, getting drafted, it’s something I’ve been dreaming of since I was five. To actually experience it is like achieving your goals.”
A month out from the Jaguars going on the clock with the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL Draft, it’s unclear what to expect at the top of the first round. There are several prospects who have a strong case to have their name called first.
Hamilton believes he’s the best player in this draft class and hopes a team sees that too.
“I mean, of course I believe that,” Hamilton said. “I feel like everybody should believe that, whether you’re predicted seventh round or first round. Without that mindset, you’re not going to get very far. If you’re like, ‘Yeah, I’m the fifth- or sixth-best player in the draft,’ that’s not going to make any team want me or make me want to create big plays.
“I’ve carried myself that way ever since I started playing sports. Just know you’re the best, go compete like the best and show you’re the best.”
Chris Emma covers the Bears, Chicago’s sports scene and more for 670TheScore.com. Follow him on Twitter @CEmma670.