Penn State Football: Hartlaub Posts Blazing Time, But Challenges Await

On a day that featured several potential first round selections in the upcoming NFL Draft, it was unsuspecting safety Drew Hartlaub who stole the show posting a blazing fast 4.22, 40-yard dash according to Penn State official records.

The actual number doesn’t really matter [most Pro Days don’t feature laser timing like the NFL Combine and instead opt for manual timing] as Penn State coach James Franklin belted out to the crowd, his official time was “FAST.”

In many ways Hartlaub’s run on Thursday afternoon was what Pro Days are all about. He had spent his career as a special team’s ace, fast down the field, fast to his man, fast from Point A to Point B. But it doesn’t lend itself to all that many highlights, he finished his time at Penn State with 15 career tackles – and two recovered fumbles. You could really like Penn State football and have no idea who Drew Hartlaub, Hanvor PA native was.

So with first round picks and NFL general managers looking on, you’ve gotta do something. Pro Day gives you a chance to say “look at me” and nothing turns heads and catches eyeballs quite like speed.

“It was nerve wracking at first because this is a once in a lifetime opportunity,” Hartlaub said after the fact. “And it’s a dream come true to be out here. But once you kind of get into it, it’s just like playing football so it’s really not that bad. I think the biggest thing for me today was to test well, so hopefully I did that going forward and showed my ability. That was really the biggest thing.”

For all the excitement though, there is something sobering in the way Hartlaub talks about his performance. There is the happiness that comes with performing well, but also the understanding roster space is limited and the NFL is an unforgiving place. Hartlaub might be fast, but he needs to be other things, and the day that he can starting proving he can be those other things may have passed him by. He was planning to do more work on Thursday but his muscles started feeling tight, so he’ll hope for more looks and individual workouts to prove more of his worth.

So it ain’t over til it’s over.

“I think I’m really versatile because I’ve I’ve played [defensive back] here for the past five years,” Hartlaub added. “But I’m not big enough to play safety in the NFL, so I probably have to be a corner but I think receiver with my speed and my ability, I might be a long term guy that they could develop, especially since I can play special teams.”

For whatever it’s worth, Hartlaub’s speed isn’t a surprise to anyone. From James Franklin to linebacker Brandon Smith, they knew one thing was coming when Hartlaub stepped on the field.

“It’s not surprising because we’ve seen it since his freshman year and I’ve seen it for five years now,” linebacker Ellis Brooks said. “Drew goes out there and takes off on everybody. But honestly, the work he puts in and the role he had on our team, how impactful he was, especially on special teams, you see him go out there and do that in front of everybody. That’s something I’m proud of as a teammate happy to see him.”

Time will tell what happens to Hartlaub in the world of football, but for all the flashy lights and cameras following around some bigger names at Penn State’s Pro Day, a kid from Hanover, Pa. went out and absolutely flew. And that’s pretty flashy in its own right.