Big 12 to Partner With NFL for Conference-Wide Pro Day in 2024
The Big 12 Conference continues to make waves in college athletics as it announced on Wednesday a partnership with the NFL for a conference-wide Pro Day beginning in 2024.
The event, which will move to replace each school’s on-campus pro days, will take place the spring of 2024 in at the Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, TX, a place the Big 12 is familiar with as Big 12 Media Days was held there a few years back.
“The first-of-its-kind Big 12 Pro Day will provide our student-athletes an opportunity to showcase their talent and skill as they turn their NFL dreams into reality,” said Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark. “Through this partnership with the NFL, Big 12 student-athletes will receive national media exposure across NFL Network and NFL Media platforms. We are thrilled to partner with the NFL to host this Pro Day, and we look forward to creating a special experience for our student-athletes.”
According to the press release, this allows the athletes the opportunity to perform and test with a state-of-the-art medical and player skill assessments, which is designed to maximize the student-athlete prospect experience.
“The Big 12 unified approach will provide world-class maximum exposure, mentorship, and development opportunities for potential future prospects pulling on the vast resources of these Big 12 institutions,” said Troy Vincent, Sr., NFL Executive Vice President of Football Operations. “From state of the art medical and talent evaluations to maximized media exposure and classroom professional development, these future leaders will experience a dignified, respectful and comprehensive assessment.”
Also included at the events will be a job fair and non-football career networking opportunities. While the NFL is the obvious goal of attending a pro day event, this might be the best event there as the large majority of the athletes in attendance will be “going pro in something other than sports,” whether it’s a few months later or after playing some form of pro football for however many days, months or years.