Typically, prospects regarded well enough to receive an invite to the NFL Combine elect to train at top-flight facilities with world-renowned trainers in the weeks leading up to the annual scouting events.
For instance, Notre Dame running back Jadarian Price went to Frisco, Texas, for five weeks to train with Mo Well, a former LSU sprinter and the director of pro and elite sports at Elite Performance. Similarly, Jeremiyah Love and Billy Schrauth went to California to prepare.
Still, two other Fighting Irish prospects invited to the NFL Combine, wide receiver Malachi Fields and offensive tackle Aamil Wagner, made the atypical choice to stay in South Bend, Ind., to work out in the Guglielmino Athletics Complex and Irish Athletic Complex with Notre Dame's director of football performance, Loren Landow.
"He's one of the best strength coaches in the world, one of the best combine prep people," Wagner said of Landow. "So, for the last couple of months, I've had the opportunity to sit down and work with him every day."
Wagner's strong opinion was formed over the two years since Landow was hired, but Fields, currently projected as a second-round draft pick, arrived on campus last June after transferring to Notre Dame from Virginia.
He could've trained anywhere in the country, but instead chose someone he's known for about six months.
"It made the most sense because Loren Landow's been training pros for years now," Fields said. "He trained Christian McCaffrey, wrote a book on the combine, and I've been working with him for this whole past year.
"So, he already knew my body and there was nothing, no adjusting to me, no adjusting to him. It was a smooth transition from the season to his offseason, preparing for the draft."
Landow published the book "All-Pro Performance Training: An Insider's Guide to Preparing for the Football Combine" in 2020. McCaffrey, the 2023 NFL Offensive Player of the Year and a three-time First-Team All-Pro, wrote the forward.
Previously, Landow was the head strength and conditioning coach with the Denver Broncos and has served as the owner and director of Landow Performance, a training facility in Centennial, Colo., for more than a decade.
In fact, he was rumored to be returning to the NFL this offseason before deciding to stay in South Bend for at least one more year.
Wagner has also enjoyed the opportunity to train with one of his teammates, allowing them to push and support each other through a physically demanding and stressful pre-draft process.
"It's been amazing. He is a freak athlete. He's someone who is going to test very well," Wagner said on Saturday morning before Fields went through any drills inside Lucas Oil Stadium. I'm very proud of the work he's put in. It's been a joy just to have him around, too. He's just a great guy, recently got married.
"So, I'm just proud of him and excited for what he does."
Wagner's statement mostly proved reliable on Saturday when Fields participated in all the tests and field drills at the NFL Combine.
His Realistic Athletic Score, a metric developed by Kent Lee Platte to measure an NFL prospect's physical tools, ranks among the top 18% out of 3,844 wide receiver prospects evaluated since 1987.
Malachi Fields is a WR prospect in the 2026 draft class. He scored an unofficial 8.22 RAS out of a possible 10.00. This ranked 686 out of 3844 WR from 1987 to 2026.
Pending bench, splits projected.https://t.co/C7fsQaSCPp pic.twitter.com/bJPwfBkZFs
— RAS.football (@MathBomb) March 1, 2026
At the combine, Fields measured 6-foot-4 ½ and 218 pounds with 32 ⅛ inch arms, giving him great size and length for his position. He also posted an impressive vertical jump, leaping 38.0 inches.
Going 🆙
3️⃣8️⃣.0️⃣0️⃣” for Malachi Fields#GoIrish☘️ pic.twitter.com/Ez7qU1i2gg
— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) February 28, 2026
He was also one of eight prospects to produce a sub-seven-second 3-cone drill.
Still, he didn't test particularly well in any area, which includes a disappointing 4.62-second time in the 40-yard dash. That represents the second-slowest 40-time among wide receivers in attendance. That may not actually hurt his draft stock, given his overall athletic profile and how well he performed on the field at Notre Dame and in the Senior Bowl,
Additionally, a source who works with receivers in the NFL raved about Fields to Irish Illustrated before the big-bodied wideout tested at the combine. The source said he thought Fields would run in the 4.5s and saw a low-4.6 as the floor, but he didn't believe a slower-than-anticipated 40-yard dash would alter his opinion much due to what he saw on film.
On Sunday, Wagner's NFL Combine performance proved to be even more fruitful. He measured at 6-foot-6 and 306 pounds, six pounds heavier than his listed weight at Notre Dame last fall. He also has 34 ½ inch, easily clearing the 33-inch threshold often required of offensive tackles at the next level.
Aamil Wagner has a really solid unofficial Relative Athletic Score, ranking among the top 11% of offensive tackle prospects dating back to 1987. pic.twitter.com/XyM6TSNlSj
— Drew Mentock (@AndrewMentock) March 1, 2026
Then, Wagner ran an excellent 5.01-second 40-yard dash, which ranked sixth among participating offensive tackles. He also posted quality measurements in the vertical (29.5 inches) and the broad jump (9 feet).
Aamil Wagner ends up with a 5.01 in the 40-yard dash at the #NFLCombine2026
That ranks sixth among offensive tackles.
pic.twitter.com/S2AZxvhdeL
— Drew Mentock (@AndrewMentock) March 1, 2026
Wagner represented the lowest-ranked prospect among the six former Notre Dame players in Indianapolis this weekend. Before the combine, ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. excluded Wagner from the top 10 offensive tackles on his big boards. Wagner wasn't listed as an honorable mention, either.
Presumably, the former Notre Dame captain performed well enough inside Lucas Oil Stadium to solidify himself as a Day 3 draft pick, even after struggling significantly against projected first-round selections such as Miami defensive linemen Akheem Mesidor and Rueben Bain Jr.
The interview process at the combine also likely served Wagner well, allowing him to demonstrate that he possesses the qualities to be a great locker room fit, even if he's not a guaranteed starter at the next level.
"I think the first thing I'll say is a hard worker and a great teammate," Wagner said. "I think one of the big, important pillars in our line of the room is being great for the guy next to you. Because if you do something by yourself, you won't go so far.
"If you do something for someone else, you're going to go farther."