Hilltopper Football hosts annual Pro Day

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – WKU Football hosted its annual Pro Day on Wednesday at Houchens-Smith Stadium.

The Hilltoppers were represented at the event by 19 players. Participating in the event from WKU were linebacker Sebastian Benjamin, wide receiver Bryce Childress, defensive lineman Zach Edwards, linebacker Terreance Ellis, linebacker Kylan Guidry, wide receiver Kisean Johnson, defensive back Anthony Johnson Jr., linebacker Devon Lynch, defensive back Devonte’ Mathews, wide receiver Michael Mathison, offensive lineman Michael Ondelacy, wide receiver Dalvin Smith, defensive back Upton Stout, defensive back Keyshawn Swanson, offensive lineman Travon Taylor, defensive lineman Terrion Thompson, offensive lineman Stacey Wilkins, linebacker Keondre Williams and running back Elijah Young.

“It felt good because this is where it started. WKU is who gave me a chance when I was out of the portal and nobody was really giving me a chance,” Stout said. “I feel like being out here one last day for Pro Day and watching the boys practice later on, it just means a lot because these are the people I went to war with every day before we even stepped out on the field, so just seeing everybody out on the field and enjoying this process has been fun.”

WKU’s Pro Day drew a crowd of personnel from 20 NFL teams. There were 17 former Hilltoppers that were on NFL rosters last season, including two that were participants in WKU’s 2024 Pro Day.

“At first I had a little bit of what I call happy nerves,” Smith said. “I was excited, but also knew how big this day was and that’s where all the nerves came in. But that shows how much you care about it when you get nervous with things like this. I felt great after what I showed today.”

The event began inside the weight room for testing, before moving outside for the 40-yard dash, shuttles, and three-cone drill. Defensive linemen and outside linebackers followed with position workouts, with quarterback/receiver/running back workouts after, and defensive back, linebacker and specialist workouts to end the field activities.

The Hilltoppers went 8-6 during the 2024 season and earned berths in the Conference USA Championship Game and Boca Raton Bowl.

WKU’s Pro Day was the next step in Stout’s journey to the NFL. He had already participated in the Reese’s Senior Bowl, where he was named the American Team Defensive Back of the Week, and took part in the NFL Scouting Combine, where he put up 21 reps on the bench press – the most for a defensive back in the event – to highlight his performance.

Stout started all 12 games that he appeared in during the 2024 season – his third season with the program after transferring from North Texas. He posted 52 tackles, with a team-high 7.5 for loss, one sack, one interception, one pass breakup and three quarterback hurries. Stout was named All-Conference USA First Team Defense (DB) by the league’s head coaches following the season.
Benjamin spent two seasons at WKU after transferring from Saint Francis. He played in 13 games during the 2024 season with nine starts, including starts over the final six games of the season. He finished the season with 53 total tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss and three sacks. He also had five quarterback hurries and a forced fumble. Benjamin ranked 12th in CUSA games in sacks, averaging .43 sacks in his seven conference games played.

“(Pro Day is) one of those things where you anticipate something for a long time and it’s a build up,” Benjamin said. “It’s not like getting prepared for the season where you know you’re going to have 10, 12, 13, 14 opportunities. You’re training for one day.”
Childress appeared in 12 games with two starts in his lone season at WKU. He caught six passes for 73 yards, and also recorded two rushes for 3 yards. Childress got the starting nod in the season opener at Alabama on Aug. 31 and in his return to New Mexico State on Nov. 9.

Edwards spent one season at WKU and played in 12 games. He recorded 11 total tackles, with 1.5 for loss and one sack. He also had two pass breakups, two quarterback hurries and a fumble recovery.

Ellis was another player who spent one season with the program. He appeared in all 14 games WKU played during the 2024 season, adding depth at linebacker and on special teams. He started for the Hilltoppers in the Boca Raton Bowl against James Madison and posted a season-high eight tackles in the game. He finished the season with 48 total tackles, a pass breakup and a forced fumble.

Guidry was at WKU for three seasons, with 28 games played during that time. He appeared in 13 games during the 2024 season, including starts in the first eight games of the season as the team’s jack before an injury that sidelined him for the Nov. 9 game at New Mexico State. He finished the year with 45 tackles, including seven for loss and three sacks. He also had a forced fumble and a pass breakup. Guidry’s seven tackles for loss ranked second on the team, and his three sacks were tied for second-most on the team.

“It’s really exciting,” Guidry said. “We worked hard for it. To see that we finally got the opportunity to (play in front of NFL scouts) felt real good.”

Kisean Johnson transferred to WKU from Alabama State for the 2024 season, and he started all 14 games at wide receiver. He led the Hilltoppers in receiving, finishing the season with 925 yards and seven touchdowns on 75 receptions. He ranked second in Conference USA in receptions per game (5.36), fifth in receiving yards per game (66.1), third in touchdown receptions (7), second in total receptions (75) and third in total receiving yards (925). He was named to the All-Conference USA Second Team Offense.

“I feel very excited, man, and more importantly I’m blessed, I’m thankful for everything – just for this shot, just for this moment,” Kisean Johnson said. “I’m just thanking the Lord that he gave me these abilities and he gave me such talent and such gifts to just come out and just play. I’m just thankful for it all, however it may go.”
Anthony Johnson Jr. spent two seasons with the Hilltoppers after transferring from Division II West Florida. In his final season, he started all 12 regular-season games at cornerback before being sidelined for postseason games due to injury. He finished the year with 49 total tackles, four tackles for loss, two interceptions, eight pass breakups and a quarterback hurry. Johnson’s eight pass breakups were twice as many as the second-highest mark on the team, and he ranked fifth in Conference USA in passes defended during the entire season and second in CUSA games. Johnson led WKU in interceptions in 2023, was first in CUSA in interceptions per game and finished the season by being named the Famous Toastery Bowl Defensive MVP.

Lynch appeared in 14 games during the 2024 season and added depth to the linebacker room. He finished the year with 22 total tackles, including two for loss and one sack. He also had one pass breakup, three quarterback hurries and one safety, which helped spark a comeback in the Sept. 21 win over Toledo. Lynch was at WKU for two seasons after spending his first three years at Shepherd.

Mathews started all 14 games at safety in his one season with the Hilltoppers. He led the team in tackles, finishing with 98 on the season, and he had one tackle for loss, two interceptions, four fumble recoveries and a forced fumble. He ranked 17th in CUSA in total tackles. The two interceptions came in the final two minutes against Toledo – in the end zone and at the 1-yard line – to help clinch WKU’s win, and he was named CUSA’s Defensive Player of the Week following the victory. Mathews was named All-CUSA Second Team Defense.

Mathison was at WKU for three seasons and appeared in 13 games with two starts in his final season after missing the 2023 season due to injury. In 2024, he had 143 yards and two touchdowns on 13 catches and added 34 yards and a score on seven rushing attempts. Mathison posted all three touchdowns in WKU’s Oct. 10 win against UTEP.

Ondelacy appeared in 31 games over four seasons with the Hilltoppers, adding depth along the offensive line and on special teams.

Smith had been with the program since 2019 and played in 60 games during that time. He finished his WKU career with 21 touchdown receptions, which is tied for fifth-most in program history. In his final season, Smith appeared in all 14 games and started the last 11 games of the season at receiver. He caught 31 passes for 406 yards and four touchdowns, and also was used on several trick plays, completing 3-of-4 passes for 107 yards and two touchdowns.
Swanson appeared in all 14 games with five starts in his lone season at WKU, including starts in five of the team’s final eight games. The safety finished third on the team in tackles with 63, while adding 1.5 tackles for loss and a pair of pass breakups.

Taylor transferred to WKU for his final season after spending four seasons at Alabama State. He started all 12 games for WKU at left tackle during the 2024 season, before missing the final two games due to injury. He helped solidify an offensive line that helped WKU finish first in Conference USA in passing. Taylor was named All-CUSA Honorable Mention Offense (OL) by the league’s head coaches.

Thompson, a Bowling Green native, came to WKU as a walk-on and worked his way into the rotation along the defensive line over his five seasons with the Hilltoppers. He appeared in 14 games for WKU during the 2024 season and posted 30 tackles, with two sacks, one fumble recovery and one pass breakup.

Wilkins came to WKU for his final season after stints at ULM and Oklahoma. He appeared in four games during the 2024 season, providing depth along the offensive line. He started the final two games of the season at left tackle – the Conference USA Championship Game at Jax State on Dec. 6 and the Boca Raton Bowl against James Madison on Dec. 18.

Williams appeared in 13 games for the Hilltoppers during his lone season with the program and added depth to the linebackers room. He finished the season with 13 tackles and one interception, which he returned for 23 yards.

Young spent two seasons at WKU after three years at Missouri. With the Hilltoppers, he appeared in 27 games with 24 starts at running back. In his final season, he started all 14 games and finished second on the team in all-purpose yards with 1,267. He was WKU’s top rusher with 883 yards and three touchdowns on 201 attempts, and he finished third on the team in receiving with 384 yards and two touchdowns on 47 catches. Young ranked sixth in CUSA in rushing yards per game (63.1), fourth in total rushing yards (883), fourth in all-purpose yards (1,267), ninth in yards per rush (4.39) and fourth in rushing attempts (201).

“I feel like I put my best foot forward,” Young said. “I trained for it these last few months very hard. I started in January at 190 (pounds) and ended at 197 and I ran well.”
The 2025 NFL Draft will take place April 24-26 in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The NFL Draft will be televised on NFL Network, ABC and ESPN.

WKU Football is scheduled to close its spring practices with the Red & White Spring Showcase, presented by SA Recycling, on Saturday, April 12, at Houchens-Smith Stadium. The event is scheduled to begin at noon CT. The Hilltoppers are scheduled to open the 2025 reagular season with a Week 0 conference game against Sam Houston on Saturday, Aug. 23, at Houchens-Smith Stadium.