Cam Skattebo Out To Prove He’s Ready For NFL: ‘People Don't Think I'm As Fast As I Am’

Cam Skattebo took college football by storm during his final season at Arizona State. He totaled 2,316 scrimmage yards and 25 touchdowns, earning first-team All-America honors and finishing fifth in Heisman Trophy voting. The hard-charging running back forced 102 missed tackles, according to Pro Football Focus, while racking up 1,711 rushing yards.

Only Heisman runner-up and No. 1 running back draft prospect Ashton Jeanty had more rushing yards in college football last season (2,601). But some NFL scouts understandably want Skattebo to show he has enough top-end speed to be an effective runner at the next level.

“People don’t think I’m as fast as I am,” Skattebo said at the NFL Scouting Combine. “I am fast. I [just like to] punish the defender because they don’t want to do it for four quarters.”

Skattebo measured in at 5-foot-9½ and 219 pounds at the combine. He did not run the 40-yard dash due to a hamstring injury. He did, however, post an explosive 39.5-inch vertical jump and 10.3-foot broad jump. Skattebo skipped last week’s Big 12 Pro Day. He reportedly will run the 40 and do all the running back positional drills at a private workout on Thursday at ASU.

Though not on the field, Skattebo has been in the spotlight lately. Earlier in March, news broke that he was being sued by a former ASU teammate. In July 2023, Skattebo allegedly “jumped up and down” on the back of a golf cart during a Sun Devils practice, which resulted in the back seat collapsing and the teammate falling to the ground and sustaining an injury. The lawsuit was originally filed in 2024 against Arizona State; Skattebo, who has not commented on the suit, was added as a defendant in January 2025.

RELATED: Arizona State RB Cam Skattebo, 2025 NFL Draft prospect, sued by former teammate

To prepare for the combine, Skattebo spent two months training in South Florida with Jordan Luallen of X3 Performance and Physical Therapy, a former college football trainer with a track record of getting players ready for the NFL. Last year, Luallen worked with running back Tyrone Tracy Jr., who ran a 4.48-second 40-yard time at the 2024 combine. The New York Giants selected Tracy in the fifth round, and he rushed for 839 yards and five touchdowns as a rookie.

“He’ll run a lot faster than people think,” Luallen said of Skattebo. “He reminds me in many ways of Tyrone Tracy — the way he runs and how forceful he is and the way he applies those forces to training. I certainly think he’s capable of running a lot faster than people think. He has the speed to be a starting running back in the league.

“He’s a powerful kid who needed some corrections to how he runs, making sure he puts himself in the best position when he opens up. But it’s all there. He just needs to put it together. I think he’ll surprise people.”

Skattebo also worked with movement specialist Tevin Allen and former Wisconsin running back Garrett Groshek on footwork drills, pass-blocking drills, film work and run-blocking schemes on the whiteboard.

“He’s a competitor,” Luallen said. “He’s really cerebral with his body, understanding how to feel things and be able to correct things naturally. … The moment he walked in the door, everybody knew who he was. But he took it all in stride. He has a big personality. That’s probably why he’s been so endearing as a player to people over the past year. He knows how to make people feel important.”

Cam Skattebo’s 36-yard TD extends ASU’s lead over Oklahoma State

This year’s running back class is the deepest in years. FOX Sports NFL Draft analyst Rob Rang has eight running backs in his top 101 players. Skattebo is ranked No 92.

READ MORE: 2025 NFL Draft prospect rankings: Three QBs in Nos. 51-101

FOX Sports NFL analyst Bucky Brooks projects Skattebo being drafted between the third and the fifth rounds.

“He’s kind of a throwback at the position,” Brooks said. “He’s a big, physical guy who has soft hands and can make it happen. He was really impressive this year, being the lead back at Arizona State. No one expected a lot from him. But he played at a high level.

“I would expect him to run in the 4.6s. I don’t think he’s going to be a blazer. I think he’s more quick than fast. I think the appreciation for him is all the things that he does. But he’s not going to turn the corner and go the distance.”

Brooks compared Skattebo’s running style and skill set to another bruiser who had a productive NFL career: former Dallas Cowboys back Marion Barber III.

Another similarly sized former NFL running back is three-time Pro Bowler Maurice Jones-Drew, who is in Skattebo’s corner.

“He has great patience and contact balance as a rusher, forcing 102 missed tackles on runs last season,” Jones-Drew wrote on NFL.com. “Skattebo could thrive in a number of NFL systems as the last piece to an offensive puzzle. The only question I have about him is his game speed, but he has the potential to be a Day 1 starter with the right team.”

Wherever he winds up, Skattebo believes he’s ready to be an effective player at the next level.

“You have to look at everything I’ve done,” he said. “I’ve run every power scheme. I’ve run every gap scheme. I’ve run every counter. There is not a run that I haven’t run yet, and I do them all pretty well.

“I’m excited to go into a new room with a new playbook and learn it. No matter what they have for me, I’m going to be able to execute at the highest level.”

Eric D. Williams has reported on the NFL for more than a decade, covering the Los Angeles Rams for Sports Illustrated, the Los Angeles Chargers for ESPN and the Seattle Seahawks for the Tacoma News Tribune. Follow him on X at @eric_d_williams.

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