Former Duke offensive lineman Graham Barton says he was happy to get out and compete with his teammates at the team's Pro Day on Thursday.
All right, Graham, you wanted to, to speak about how your pro day went today and uh why this is such a great opportunity for you guys to kind of like put your talents on display for that last opportunity to get. Yeah. Yeah, it's just great to be out here with these guys one more time. Just compete with these guys one more time. Uh You know, everyone looked prepared, everyone looked sharp, uh just really proud of the way everyone came out here, you know, gave it through all that. I think we, you know, put on a good show for Duke and just proud of everyone and, and just happy to get out here one more time with these guests. Graham, you were an indie for the combine, obviously didn't participate. But what did you learn while you were out there? Obviously to bring the pro day to day to help your your steps? Yeah. Um you know, obviously a lot goes in the combine. It's not just the on field drills. So I think I, you know, gained a lot um of knowledge just from the formal interview process and, and all of that. What goes into that and, and speaking to teams, I think, you know, I help myself in that category. I think, you know, I got to show off some of my football IQ and how I understand the game and the passion I have for the game. So just, you know, overall, uh, you know, happy about the way that went. I think I learned a lot. I got a lot of advice from some really good coaches. Um, so I think that was a productive week and then, you know, kind of allowed me to, to feed into this week and do some more on field stuff here and, and, um, just, you know, come out and, and, you know, have a good day and, and just get to watch all these guys have a good day as well. Um, yeah, I mean, I, I've talked to a lot of teams, um, you know, just, you know, a lot of teams go back and forth about, you know, what position I'm gonna play and everyone has a little different preference and, um, so just, you know, getting to hear from a lot of teams and, and some of the feedback and, and, you know, being able to use that to help myself and keep improving. Um, you know, it's really kind of what I've heard from, from a lot of these teams. How would you compare and contrast the combine experience versus the pro day? Yeah, I think, you know, the only difference really is just, you know, here it's, you're at Duke, right? You're in your home turf, you're on a field. You've practiced at 100 times with your, your friends, you know, that you've been with for years and, and so I think it's just a little more of a, you know, I guess, a comfortable atmosphere, you could say, um, you know, you're around everyone, you know, and, and, you know, it's just you, it's about having fun, right. It's all quiet and tense out here. But, but, you know, you try to loosen the mood and just have fun with, compete with your guys and I think that's really what it's all about and that's why, you know, everyone loves coming back for, for pro day is the quietest football you can think of. Probably one of them. Yes, getting lined up to do a drill and there's just nothing but silence. Yeah. Graham. How big is this for program building? Just having so many of you guys here today from the group. Yeah, I think it just, you know, speaks volumes to, you know, the leadership. We've had, uh, the past few years and, you know, kinda allude to the, the turnaround we've had in the last couple of years and, and how we were, you know, be able to get from those, you know, seasons of two and three wins and then getting the nine and eight and you just, you know, that I think that was on display today, right? That like just the the senior leadership we had and the talent we had in the senior class and just getting that core of guys together one last time, I think, you know, to, to show our abilities, I think, you know, we did just that and we, we showed why we were able to improve um as fast as we did. Graham, we're a month away from the draft and obviously you're not gonna be in Detroit. You've already told us that you're gonna be at home with the folks. What's it gonna mean to you when you hear your name, whether it be first round, second round. Um you know, it's just gonna, you know, be a lot really just grateful to even be standing here with you guys. Um You know, it, it's gonna be a big moment. Obviously, I've worked really hard for this and, and, you know, really excited to, to do that, but I'm, you know, I'm just excited to share that with, you know, the people who have always supported me and, and have always, you know, been there with me um through all the ups and downs and have kind of gone on this journey with me. So, you know, it'll be a cool moment to share with them. Um you know, but just trying to, you know, enjoy it day by day, not trying to think too much about that, to be honest with you right now and worry about that as it gets closer. Um, but yeah, just, you know, will be an exciting moment but, you know, obviously still a lot of work to do to get there and, um, just, you know, looking forward to, to what's ahead, I know with offensive line. Right. It's, it's about what a team is looking for. You, you know, what position they'd be having you fill in, um, when you prepare for something like that, how, how does that kind of, um, flexibility factor into how you get ready over these past few months? Yeah, to be honest with you, you just gotta make sure you add it all. Um, and do your, do your training regimen and, and what you do on a day to day basis, like if, if you saw out here today, like, you know, they had us all snapping, they had us all on a right hand stance and a left hand stance and I said the next level, that's what it's all about, right is, is being able to move from spot to spot and O line is a violent position. You know, there's injuries happen, rotations happen. You've got to be able to, you know, play swing and, and go back and forth from side to side. And, you know, teams value that, um, you know, as especially in the, the long seasons of the NFL. So, you know, just being able to show that versatility, you've got, you know, you gotta work at it and you, you know, you gotta, you know, get comfortable with the movement. But, you know, I think it's something that just over my time at Duke, I've also gotten really good at just, you know, had really great offensive line coaches who have taught me so much about this game and, and gotten me where I'm at. And so just, you know, I think you, you build a bank of that over your career and, and just being able to showcase that today um with all those guys is really awesome. How much do you pay attention to, like, whatever projections are out there for you and, and, and at the same time, kind of like blocking that noise to make sure you focus on what you have to do to, yeah, like you said, little, little to none. Um You know, I know like the, the media mock drafts, it makes everyone happy and everyone reads into it, but, you know, those guys aren't in the f in the front office, you know, they're, it's the media. So, you know, obviously it's cool to be recognized and it's, you know, you know, and, you know, obviously my parents and friends and family see that stuff, but like you said, I just try to block that out, you know, I'll go wherever I go um wherever is right for me. So just, you know, I'm not gonna worry about that until the day until that day. And I'm just gonna, you know, keep being the best I can to keep working as hard as I can and, you know, you know, when you work as hard as you can, good things will follow. So just staying on that course and, um, you know, wherever I end up, I'm gonna make the best of it. Um, and, and, you know, attack 100%. So not, yeah, to answer your question, not reading into that too much at all and, and, you know, not really worried about where I go in the draft and, and um just, you know, looking forward to get on the team and, and start, you know, building with them. What's your process and schedule look like from now until draft day? Yeah. Um pretty similar to, to before pro day, to be honest with you just, you know, getting stronger, um continuing to improve in the weight room, um, you know, increasing my football knowledge, you know, make sure I'm watching tape, you know, working out at different positions, making sure I'm ready for, for whatever teams ask of me. Um and just, you know, continue on that ground up, you know, obviously I've got some visits and, and we'll have some more interviews until that um draft process, but, you know, after pro dates, you know, you're on the, you're on the downfall and, and so just, you know, getting towards that, um, you know, just continuing to work the way I've been working, not letting the fact that pro day over stop that and just, you know, continue to climb and continue to build and, and then see what happens draft day and go from there.