Chargers take in local talent at SDSU pro day

Like UCLA and USC, San Diego State is the third stop for the Chargers among the “local” pro days that the team takes in on an annual basis.

With a handful of low-profile, but high-upside players in this year’s class, it’s no surprise that the team is taking in the showcase to find some mid-round gems.

The Aztec prospect getting the most buzz as we head into April has got to be 6-foot-5, 252-pound Kahale Warring, an athletically-gifted tight end with minimal experience at the position because- and get this:

He didn’t start playing football until his senior year of high school.

He did, however, play just about everything else he could while at Sonora High School in California. These included water polo, cross-country, swimming, basketball, soccer, and tennis.

After redshirting his freshmen year in 2015 to allow him to bulk-up, he worked his way into more playing time each new year, culminating in a pair of starts out of the 12 games he played in during his redshirt-junior season. Warring still managed to lead the Aztecs in catches with 31 for 372 yards three scores.

His combine was quite astounding as well. His 4.67 forty was among the top marks at the position while his vertical, broad, 20-yard shuttle, and 60-yard shuttle were all good for 4th, 3rd, 4th, and 3rd, respectively at among tight ends.

Two other prospects of note for the Chargers should be San Diego State’s pair of offensive tackles, Tyler Roemer and Ryan Pope.

Roemer is likely the prospect with the higher upside between the two but the tackle doesn’t come without some red flags.

He was suspended indefinitely by the team for the last few games of 2018 and that is what inevitably caused him to declare for the draft as he likely didn’t know if he was going to be welcomed back anytime soon.

Roemer had a promising start to his career, starting all 13 games at left tackle in 2017 as a redshirt freshman and earning USA Today Freshman All-American and second-team All-Mountain West honors in the process.

Roemer excels in the areas of functional strength and torque, finding the most success in turning defenders out of running lanes and kicking the door wide open for the team’s ball carriers. Look no further than last year’s first-round pick Rashaad Penny and how wild he ran behind this offensive line.

Pope might look the part as much as anybody in this draft but according to NFL Draft Analyst Lance Zierlein, there’s some work to be done. Here’s what LZ had to say:

As another developmental prospect, in the line of Sam Tevi back in 2017, Pope could make some sense as a late round flier, but I’d be much more comfortable trying to tag him as a priority free agent following the draft.