The NFL Draft Scouting Combine begins on Thursday and Michigan has 18 players earn an invite to Indianapolis for the Combine. The Wolverines have a chance to break the draft record that Georgia holds. Back in 2022, the Bulldogs had 15 players selected in the NFL Draft and with the Wolverines having 18 players invited to the Combine — Michigan has a chance to hold the new record.

While Michigan might get nearly 20 players drafted in April, the Combine is all about boosting your draft stock. Last season, DJ Turner ran an absurd 4.26 40-yard dash and rocketed up draft boards.

Here are five Michigan football players that could soar up draft boards after the Combine this week.

J.J. McCarthy

Quarterback J.J, McCarthy is already slated to be a top-15 pick in April with several NFL teams looking to take the two-year starter at Michigan. McCarthy didn’t put up staggering numbers during his time in Ann Arbor, but McCarthy was a proven winner and a great teammate. NFL scouts and General Managers will get a chance to speak with the quarterback and that alone should win over any skeptics. McCarthy was always a joy to cover and he always had a positive outlook on everything — even bad situations.

Physically, McCarthy has a chance to prove something throwing the football this week. Top quarterbacks Caleb Williams, Drake Maye, and Jayden Daniels are not throwing at the Combine and as long as McCarthy performs well, he has a chance to jump at least one of them on draft boards.

McCarthy is also a dual-threat quarterback, but it wasn’t always something that he showed off in Ann Arbor. Early on in his career, McCarthy would take off running, but it appeared the coaches wanted him to be a little more careful after he earned the full-time starting job. When McCarthy shows off some speed in Indianapolis, that might intrigue even more NFL coaches and GMs.

Roman Wilson

The four-year Michigan wide receiver is already a big riser thanks to his performance during the Senior Bowl practice week. Wilson was flying all around on the field and was making elite catches while running elite routes.

We all know Wilson can fly, but if he has a chance to make a DJ Turner rise this week. As mentioned above, Turner ran a 4.26 last year at the Combine, and if Wilson can run close to a 4.3 this week — he will have plenty of fans when it comes to NFL scouts.

This past season, Wilson was the top target of McCarthy’s. He hauled in nearly 800 yards and caught 12 TDs on the year. It was a big season for No. 1 and that alone caught the attention of NFL scouts. After seeing a rise in mock drafts after the Senior Reeses Bowl, Wilson has a chance to see himself go late first to early second round if he performs well this week.

Kris Jenkins

It doesn’t feel like Kris Jenkins is getting the love he deserves. After landing on Bruce Feldman’s ‘Freaks’ list, Jenkins draft status seemed to rise heading into the 2023 football season. But with the meteoric rise of linemen Mason Graham and Kenneth Grant — the Jenkins chatter quieted down.

It’s Combine week and Jenkins has a chance to put a stamp on his name. Last year, Mazi Smith made a rise on the Dallas Cowboys’ draft board and maybe Jenkins will do the same. The smooth talker will win over scouts and GMs, and he has all the physical tools to win the Combine. Jenkins should kill the bench press and if he can make an impression when running the 40-yard dash and shuttle — he will rise up draft boards.

Jenkins may not of had many sacks (2.5) in 2023, but he was one heck of a run stuffer for the Wolverines. He is versatile enough to play all over the line and after reviewing some film, NFL scouts and coaches will like to get Jenkins on their team. As of now, Jenkins is a late-first-to-early-second round pick in the draft.

Junior Colson

After a great three-year career with Michigan, linebacker Junior Colson is off to the NFL. Colson has as good of an argument as anyone at being the first inside linebacker off the board. Colson put of ridiculous stats with the Wolverines. He led the Wolverines’ defense in tackles in 2022 (101) and 2023 (95) while rotating with other linebackers. If Colson played nearly every snap — his stats would’ve been absurd.

Teams are already lining up wanting to speak with Colson. He has the size to line up in a few different positions and the speed to make up ground. Colson should perform well on Thursday when he tests and will be one of the faster LBs in the draft.

Colson is being mocked to go in the second-to-third round of the draft, but I could definitely see him going late-first-to-early-second.

Drake Nugent

Drake Nugent is one of the more interesting prospects that Michigan has to offer. He won’t be a top pick, nor will he be an early round pick — more than likely at least. But Nugent has a chance to put himself in that mid round level.

Draft experts have Nugent going in the fifth or sixth round of the draft, but you could see that rise after Thursday. Nugent will not win anyone over with his size, but he does have good strength. He will need to perform well at the bench press and show that he has good enough speed to protect against NFL rushers.

Nugent is a very smart individual and will speak well to scouts. At the very least, Nugent should become a solid backup that NFL teams would want on their team in the middle of the draft.