The National Football League Draft is now about a month away, and UCF Knights football had two players make a strong impression at the NFL Scouting Combine: edge rushers Malachi Lawrence and Nyjalik Kelly.
Kelly turned in a solid performance at the NFL Scouting Combine. The UCF Knights edge rusher recorded a 4.88-second 40-yard dash with a 1.69-second 10-yard split, along with a 37-inch vertical jump and a 9-foot-11 broad jump. Kelly also stood out physically, recording the longest arm measurement among edge rushers at the combine while tying for seventh in the vertical leap among his position group.
Kelly, a Fort Lauderdale native, spent two seasons at UCF after playing his first two college seasons with the Miami Hurricanes. In 24 games in a UCF uniform, Kelly started 23 with 8.5 sacks, an interception, 17 tackles for loss, and 99 total tackles. In 2025, Kelly led the Knights with two forced fumbles and eight quarterback hurries, broke up a career-high three passes, and was an All Big-12 Honorable Mention. He also tied Cole Kozlowski for the team lead in tackles for loss with 7.5.
(Photo: Stacy Revere / Staff, Getty)
Here's what Kelly had to say at the NFL Combine:
On the play he's looking forward to seeing on replay and what he'd say to the person on the business end of that highlight:
"Yeah, when I forced the fumble for the touchdown versus West Virginia."
On what that big moment felt like with the crowd going nuts:
"I'm kind of used to it. I was just rushing and the quarterback kept running. So just to finally be able to get him down and get it for a fumble. We was working on trying to get turnovers for about like three four games. So for me to be able to get that turnover, it was fun and it was a blessing."
On how much his time at UCF helped him:
"UCF helped me develop on and off the field. I feel like I'm blessed to be able to be considered a Knight at the end of the day."
On meeting with the Buccaneers this week:
"Yes, informal. That meeting went well. I think of Elijah Roberts, my former teammate at Miami."
On growing up at Dillard and what South Florida football did for him:
"Growing up with Dillard, it was a lot. It was fun. I mean, it was right in the middle of the hood. So just growing up there, putting on for my city, putting on for my community and being able to stay at Dillard and not go to no other private school and be able to bring that school back. Of course I'd love to play for the city again."
On his favorite players growing up:
"I was a fan of players. I wasn't really the fan of like teams. I wasn't like a fan of Marshawn Lynch for real."
On representing his city alongside guys he grew up with:
"It's a blessing we're here at the combine. It don't even feel real to be here."
(Photo: Lauren Leigh Bacho / Contributor, Getty)
On formal meetings with teams at the combine:
"I didn't meet with [any] yet."
On his favorite uniform combination at UCF:
"I'll say the Space U uniform from last year."
On his best sport outside of football:
"Basketball. To nobody. I ain't that good. I ain't all that good to compare myself to nobody. More handle or more? More film shot, more defense. I don't get the ball. Don't even pass me the ball. I just play defense."
On RJ Harvey going to Denver and their relationship:
"It's cool to see somebody that you was recently playing with go there, put on for the college, show us the path. Show us that it's nothing but mental to go there and just put on. We talked a little bit. He basically just told me this going to be the longest year I ever had and I'm kind of seeing that right now."
On keeping up with South Florida football:
"No, not too much. Not really. For real."
On who's up next:
"Malachi Toney for real. Of course, Antoine Jackson. Of course he's next up. But like this gonna be his senior year. Malachi is a freshman. So of course Antoine Jackson gonna be next up."
On Sincere Edwards and playing with him this past year:
"High motor. He has a leadership capabilities. Sincere, he's a great football player. Excellent football player."
On other sports he played growing up:
"I ran track when at about like 13 and then I played basketball from like 8 to about 11th grade year of high school. I mean I just was an athlete just growing up. I mean I ain't have no choice but to play other sports because I was just bad. So they had to put me in other sports."
On donating to Dillard High School during the season and going back to his school:
"It was cool to donate. When I went to Dillard, we didn't really have a lot of resources. I mean we was wearing the same uniforms for like 12 15 years ago. We had to do a lot of donations, fundraisers just to go to college visit. So just being able to give them money, a little bit of money to help towards that so they can do what me and my teammates at the time weren't able to do."
On when it dawned on him that the NFL might be a possibility:
"By like junior year college. I really didn't really expect this, you know, just but then after like talking to coaches at UCF, they telling me like, scouts are really looking at you.' That's when it like really hit me."
The NFL Draft is scheduled for April 23–25.
Joe Londergan contributed to this article.
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