One of the biggest strengths for the UCF Knights last season came off the edge, where veterans Malachi Lawrence and Nyjalik Kelly helped anchor the defensive line.
Both pass rushers earned invitations to the NFL Combine as they looked to boost their draft stock and take the next step toward the NFL.
While Lawrence turned in one of the more eye-catching performances of the pre-draft cycle, Kelly entered UCF's 2026 Pro Day looking for another opportunity to improve on some of his testing numbers. With representatives from 29 of the NFL's 32 teams in attendance, he got that chance.
At the combine, Kelly ran a 4.88-second 40-yard dash with a 1.69-second 10-yard split. He also posted a 37-inch vertical and a 9-foot-11 broad jump. When he met with the media after pro day, Kelly said one of his main goals was improving his 40 time, something he believed he accomplished.
(Photo: © Kirby Lee-Imagn Images, USA TODAY Sports)
Kelly's value extends well beyond testing numbers. He earned All-Big 12 honorable mention honors after starting all 12 games for UCF last season.
He finished with 46 tackles, ranking fifth on the team, including 33 solo stops and 13 assisted tackles. Kelly also recorded 7.5 tackles for loss and three sacks. He was also part of the defensive front that earned Big 12 Defensive Line of the Week honors for its performance against **West Virginia**on Oct. 18.
Here's what Kelly had to say after his pro day performance.
On how Pro Day went today:
"Today was fun. It was good. Blessed to be able to showcase my talent at Pro Day. I mean, I dreamed for this situation ever since I was little. So it's a blessing."
On what he was able to show today that he maybe couldn't at the Combine:
"I feel like today I was more so worried about, focused on my 40 because I didn't like my time at the Combine. I believe I checked the boxes because I got my 40 down today. So I feel like I did good today."
On the process between the Combine and Pro Day:
"Long process. Long stressful process cause I mean you doing all this training and you don't even know where you going to live in a month. So it's a long process but I mean it's a blessing. As a kid you ain't know you had to go through all these steps but you dream for it. God put me in the place to finally be in the NFL. So this is something I have to go through. I have no choice."
On when he first dreamed of being an NFL player:
"Ever since I came out the womb. My grandpa used to be on the couch kicking his feet up and NFL was on. We always watching the Dolphins or somebody. He out there on Sundays. It was NFL Sunday. So it just always been a dream to look and see players play on the screen. I just always wanted to be one of those players on the screen cuz I knew my grandpa watched it. I always wanted my grandpa to watch me on TV one day."
On the difference between his Combine performance and today:
"Everything at the Combine was good, just except my 40. I just didn't like my 40 because I knew on film I'm way faster than what I showcased on the 40. So pretty much today I just wanted to focus on my 40. I feel like I did good in the bag drills at the Combine, so I really weren't too focused on drills. I just was focused on the 40."
On instant feedback from coaches today:
"Every coach I talked to said they loved it. They said I checked all the boxes and I did good. They already knew I was fast, but I just wanted when I ran the 40, they had checked another box."
(Photo: © Kirby Lee-Imagn Images, USA TODAY Sports)
On his pitch to teams:
"You can't really pitch yourself cuz the film is the film. So when they pull my film out, what's on the film is me showcasing my length, my bend, and my athleticism to be able to cover, rush the passer, and play the run."
On what he's most proud of from his college career at UCF:
"I'm most proud that I can play a lot of positions. I'm versatile. You guys seen me drop back in coverage, guard people down the field, come off the edge, cause disruption to the quarterback, get tackles for loss, stop the run. So just being able to showcase that I can be a plug-and-play type of player. I can play outside linebacker, defensive end, and sometimes move at four. That's what I'm most proud of. I can basically be put anywhere on the line and make plays."
On who helped make him a better player:
"I feel like every coach taught me something from my first year to my last year. From high school, little league. I feel like I take something from every coach. It don't matter if the coach is not as good as the coach, I always learn something from somebody."
On upcoming visits or workouts:
"I got one on Friday. I don't want to say where—I don't want to get in trouble later."
On growing up in South Florida and youth development:
"It's very important. Y'all wouldn't even believe on my 8U team, Ruben was on my team. So like, you never know who you going to play with. Like everybody on my little league team, like all 22 of us are all D1 college players. So just growing up in South Florida, everybody being competitive, everybody got the same goals. So it's great to come out of South Florida and play football."
On passing the torch to the next UCF edge rushers like Sincere Edwards and Isaiah Nixon:
"You going to see the same thing. I don't know it's not going to be a drop off because I seen them take the time in practice and develop. They just really couldn't showcase their talents or what they could do because me and Mi was in front of them, but I seen them in practice. I seen them in games. Like I know what they going to do. So I know it's not going to be a drop off. It's just going to be the same like me and Mi, but it's just two different names—it's Sincere and Isaiah."
On the conversation around Ruben (likely Ruben Bain)'s arm length:
"To me they just feel like it's just people that don't play football worrying about arm length and worrying about how big somebody is, how strong, fast. I mean if you can get after the quarterback, you can cause disruption. It shouldn't matter what your measurable is as long as you making plays."
On what will go through his mind if he gets the draft call:
"Dang, I'm in the NFL. I don't really know until I actually get the call and whatever my emotion... It would mean everything. My mom rooting for me, my family rooting for me. So just everybody in my family just expecting me to be this great young man and I'm finally showcasing it to them."
On his favorite memories from UCF:
"My first time running out of the tunnel. And just seeing the atmosphere in the stadium. At Miami it's not really a college town, so I never really had the college experience. So just coming to UCF and actually having a college experience and having a big fan base and a great coaching staff and a great culture around the team, it was just fun and it was great."
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