2021 National Scouting Combine Featured Athlete Eric Orlandi, Rugby Lock & Football DL from Cincinnati

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Eric Orlandi |  University of Cincinnati | Rugby: Lock | Football: DL 

Instagram: @eric.orlandi

Eric Orlandi, DL – University of Cincinnati

Q: Tell us about your college (or pro) career and what the recruiting/scouting process was like. Why did you choose Cincinnati?

A: I chose the University of Cincinnati to pursue a career in nursing. I loved the school culture, the classes, and the architecture. I was recruited to play rugby for UC by friends that already were playing on the team, and those were the same friends that I continued to play with at the Semi-pro level for the Cincinnati Wolfhounds Rugby Football Club.

 

Q: What would you consider to be your biggest accomplishment in your sports career so far?

A: My biggest accomplishment would be beating a nationally ranked opponent in Bowling Green my senior year, and being invited to the ACRC Bowl Series in North Carolina.

 

Q: What do you consider to be one of the more important things you learned from the coaching staff while playing at Cincinnati?

A: To trust yourself and your team. You practice for a reason. You push yourself in drills and conditioning to be ready. Your team does the same. When you are in a scrum, and you’re tired and sore, you look to your teammates and trust in them to make a play happen, to keep driving forward.

Q: How was your career impacted due to the 2020 pandemic and what have you learned from the adversity?

A: 2020 made everything I was working for even more uncertain. It put everything on hold, just as did for so many others. I was furloughed at my job, I couldn’t train the way that I used to, and I lost out on the opportunity to try out in Canada when their season was canceled. I had to learn how to pick myself up, persevere through disappointment, and come out on the other side the best version of myself that I could build given the circumstances. I have learned to be patient and resilient.

I am strong physically and mentally driven. I learn quickly and devour lesson plans. I am mature and disciplined in everything I do. The minute you place a playbook in my hands, I will learn it from front to back. I work well with a team and genuinely enjoy helping people in any way that I can.

Q: What was your major and what are your plans if football doesn’t work out?

A: When I graduated, my major was Health Education: Exercise and Fitness. I currently have a full time job, working as a travel nurse recruiter. I will continue doing that and potentially go back to school to help myself pursue something that I enjoy as much as I enjoy playing sports.

 

Q: What would your current/past teammates say about you and your qualities?

A: I think that they would say that I am a hard worker, and always there for the team. If people need rides to practice, or a little gas money I try to help out my teammates and pick them up where I can. In the game I am aggressive and relentless going after the ball carrier. I don’t let anyone get in my way of getting the job done.

 

Q: What has been one of the most memorable plays of your career at any level?

A: During my senior season, I scored my first “try” during a match against OU. Being in my position, you tend to be used as a bruiser and don’t get a lot of touches on the ball. When I got my chance, I took full advantage of it and it was awesome.

 

Q: What has been your biggest challenge and how do you manage it?

A: My biggest challenge has been financially trying to get to this point. I work full time, and while that pays much of what I need in order to train and prepare my body for football and this combine, it hasn’t always been enough.

 

Q: If you could compare yourself to a pro athlete, who would that be and why?

A: I would say Calais Campbell or Deforest Buckner. My size is similar to both and I relate to the way that they have to manipulate their bodies to make themselves smaller to the defense, while staying on the attack and explosive.

 

Q: What is your biggest strength that you bring to a professional team and why should pro scouts consider you?

A: I am strong physically and mentally driven. I learn quickly and devour lesson plans. I am mature and disciplined in everything I do. The minute you place a playbook in my hands, I will learn it from front to back. I work well with a team and genuinely enjoy helping people in any way that I can.

 

Q: Are you involved in mentoring, a charity or do you “give back” or ”pay it forward” in your community?

A: I have been unable to mentor in recent years due to my work schedule, but I would love to increase my charitable time commitments to helping whatever community that I’m placed into.

Q: How are you preparing for the 2021 National Scouting Combine and what are your goals?

A: I have spent the last year gaining as much strength as I can working with Cliff Lane at BEAT Personal training. I have also spent a month working with Ignition APG in Northern Kentucky to make sure that my drills, body, and mind are ready to perform at the combine. My goals are to match or beat numbers laid down by last year’s combine invitees, to turn heads, and to make contacts.

 

Q: What would be your ultimate achievement?

A: To be noticed and picked up by an NFL team. To do something I love, while supporting my family in a way that I previously never would have imagined. If I could do that, then maybe I could inspire and assist others in believing in themselves and chasing after their dreams like I did.

 

Q: What do you enjoy doing when not playing football?

A: I enjoy reading, lifting, cooking, and expanding my record collection.

 

Q: If you could make a positive impact on all of society what would it be and why?

A: I would like to help fund research into diseases for which there is no cure. I would most like to cure Alzheimer’s. I don’t think that people should die not knowing their own loved ones, for families to be forgotten. I’d like to be a part of bringing hope to those affected by this disease.

 

Q: Who is or has been the most influential person in your life?

A: There are two. The first is my father who introduced me to sports. I am forever grateful to him for giving me the gifts that I possess physically and mentally when it comes to athletics. The second is my fiancé Claire. She gave me the courage to pursue my dreams and come to this combine. She is relentless in following her dreams and has inspired me to be the same.

 

Q: What is something unique about you that people would find interesting?

A: I enjoy listening to and going to operas.

 

Q: What is your dream job?

A: To play multiple seasons in the NFL is my ultimate dream. However, being able to play for any team would still be a dream come true.

2024 National Scouting Combine

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National Scouting Combine Posts

“I would like to start this message by thanking you and everyone involved who made this opportunity possible. I am truly grateful for the experience and atmosphere you’ve cultivated through the National Scouting Combine. My journey has not been an easy one by any means. Losing my mother in 2017 to cancer, losing the house my brothers and I called home before attending this very event in 2018, and completely bombing the event left me completely shot mentally. This event that just took place gave me the motivation and hope for better days. That is exactly what has been provided to me. Opportunities I never considered have presented themselves to me with each passing day. WWE contract offers, Rugby offers, and NFL scout inquiries about what kind of man Jarrod Cann is, are just the first of many opportunities that were made real through my participation in your event! Thank you for allowing me to tell my story on such a platform and allowing me to save lives with my story.”
Jarrod Cann
Jarrod CannRB, Central Connecticut State
“The National Scouting Combine was a great opportunity for me to get official test numbers and get my information out to teams and scouts to gain necessary exposure. It is always a big challenge for athletes to get official verified numbers but the National Scouting Combine gave me this opportunity. The entire staff works with the players to put them into the best position to succeed. They give players opportunities to promote themselves on and off the field. They have a setup to do all combine tests and to perform official position drills. The event also allows for players to gain useful contacts with teams and National Scouting Combine staff members to further promote themselves. The National Scouting Combine provided me with a chance to showcase my abilities as a free agent and put myself in a good position to have success in my pursuit to play professional football. I want thank the National Scouting Combine staff for giving players this unique chance to demonstrate their skills.”
Chris Bury
Chris BuryTE, Notre Dame
“I had a great experience at the combine. The whole staff was extremely positive and really wanted the best for all of the players that attended. Being that I was a free agent and a season removed from NFL camps it was crucial for me to get new numbers to show I was still working hard. My only opportunity so far came from a scout who attended the combine. As players that’s why we attend these events, to be seen by the pro levels. I’m very greatful for the opportunity that was came from the combine. I’ll be recommending it to every player possible in the future who’s looking to go pro.”
Dillon Salva
Dillon SalvaTE, Merrimack
My experience at the National Scouting Combine was an extremely positive one. Coming from a small school (Bryant University – Division I AA), opportunities to showcase my athleticism and measurables to pro scouts were scarce. However, Jimmy and his team gave me that opportunity when they put together a first-class event, in an outstanding venue and invited hundreds of players that had been overlooked or just wanted the opportunity to showcase their abilities. The connections, advice and coaching I received at the 2018 National Scouting Combine were priceless, as many pro scouts and coaches began to get in contact with me during and immediately after the combine. Jimmy and his team did an outstanding job of incorporating new, cutting edge technologies into the combine, while inviting well-respected coaches, scouts and former professional players to run the drills and provide coaching. Jimmy provided me with a platform to chase my dream of playing professional football that I would not otherwise have had, and in turn is part of the reason why many CFL teams took interest in me, why I was invited to Rookie Minicamps with the Jets and Texans and why I have now signed with the Orlando Apollo’s of the new Alliance of American Football League. The invitation to the 2018 National Scouting Combine was a blessing to me and my career and I would recommend any and all small school or overlooked college football player to attend and take advantage of this combine that, with Jimmy leading it, will continue to get better every single year.
Matt Sewell
Matt SewellWR, Bryant University
“My testimonial would be because of COVID-19, it has hindered my ability to showcase my talents at pro days, workouts, and tryouts. But, because of the NSC I can still send official numbers and video to each team, while also gaining the opportunity to meet scouts in face and build a relationship with them. Lastly, the NSC is second only to the NFL combine which helps me have something else to hang my hat on as one of the top performers!”
Jamal Ware
Jamal WareLB, Maryville College
“Thank you for the support and helping with promoting me for the next level. I am most definitely interested and my experience at the national scouting combine was incredible. It was my first official opportunity and it was a professional combine. All verified, legitimate laser times and numbers are vital to have especially in the times we are facing today. All of the coaches and personnel involved were professional in every aspect. It is such a blessing to have the opportunity to be apart of the national scouting combine and I can’t be more grateful to have verified numbers.”
Kyle Haines
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“First and foremost I would like to thank the NSC staff for giving me the opportunity to showcase my skills in front of scouts and allow myself to get relevant combine numbers. This combine is by far the best Combine I have been to. The rooms were great and the food that was provided by NSC was great as well. You can feel that they had a passion for helping those who may not have had an NFL Combine invite and others who are just chasing that opportunity. They were extremely supportive and willing to market the players in every way possible. I was beyond impressed with the testing once we got going. Everything was very organized and professional just as it should be. When it came to the testing they had both hand time and laser time which makes your test times that much more official. The number of scouts that attended the Scouting Combine was even better. This staff truly knows how to put together a legit A+ combine experience and was by far the best combine experience I have been a part of.”
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Tyler Anderson
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Pursuing a career in professional football from a small school is a lonely path. A prospect may have the support of his peers, family, and teammates, but the process can be overwhelming and very confusing. Often times small school prospects don’t have access to the resources provided to prospects at football powerhouses. “How can I get myself in front of scouts? How can I prove to them that I can play at the next level?” These are only a few of the many questions that race through a potential prospects mind on a daily basis. The Beyond Sports Network National Combine helped simplify this process for many of the players that attended, including myself. Despite the combine being held for a few days, the information and services provided by the combine, as well as the sense of community between the staff members and prospects stood out to me. Every test that would be performed at the NFL combine was covered, every coach and staff member supported each prospect to an unbelievable extent, and the amount of scouts and agents in attendance and how interactive they were was impressive. The Beyond Sports Network National Scouting Combine was a critical step in attempting to take my talents to the next level. If you are a small school prospect with no clear path to the next level, the National Scouting Combine will certainly clear up the path for you.
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BSN gave me the platform I needed to be respected as a athlete. I came to there first Combine in 2010. I was pulled by every NFL, CFL scout. At that time there were a couple really good WRs including a SEC top WR who NFL scouts were coming to see. Once I put up good #s in my Testing Drills, we did one on ones. I showed my great covering skills to the point all the scouts herd the WRs talking and asking who was this guy. Then BSN promoted me and my numbers and I received workouts on all levels. I became a name in the business. Having legit numbers and respectable organization backing you is what you need. Everyone can say they can play and perform but coaches and scouts don’t believe you. BSN gives you the stage to perform and prove them wrong and get the opportunity you deserve. Because of BSN I was able to create a long professional career and when needed comeback to prove I could still play at a high level.
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