INDIANAPOLIS -- There's a tape of Le'Veon Bell declaring he would play in the NFL. But this wasn't from January, when

he announced he was leaving Michigan State

for the pros.

This was recorded 15 years ago. And he didn't have any teeth.

"My aunt has this video from when I was 6 years old, no teeth or nothing, and I told my mom and my aunt that I was going to the NFL," the former Michigan State tailback said Friday at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis.

"She still got that video and once I seen it, I was like, 'Man, that's crazy. My dream is actually here. It's crazy.'"

Bell led the Big Ten in rushing as a junior last season, racking up 1,973 yards, and decided to fulfill his dream of entering the NFL. Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio tried to get him to stay, but the tailback couldn't pass up an opportunity to help address his family's economic plight.

"I know I'm ready for the next step, and I'm so close to graduating from school already," Bell said. "I only got a semester left, so I can always go back and finish.

"Knowing the struggles of my mom and my family with money and everything, taking that next step was probably the best decision for me."

Bell is projected as a fourth-round pick according to CBSSports.com. He's outside the top-five tailbacks according to most analysts, including ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. and NFL Network's Mike Mayock.

That surprises Bell, who thinks he is an early round prospect and among the best tailbacks in the country.

"That always fuels me," he said of the low projections. "Even out of high school, when people said I couldn't play at Michigan State, that always fueled me and drove me and made me that much better. Now it's happening again, and I just have to keep that edge on me.

"That's what I'm going to do. Go out there and prove people wrong."

That starts with the 40-yard dash. Bell said he thinks he's being undervalued because he's perceived to lack speed, and will try to turn heads Sunday during speed drills at the combine.

Bell has trained hard in Miami, Fla., the past few weeks and has dropped to 230 pounds. That's about 7 pounds lighter than his playing weight for the Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl in December, and 14 lighter than his top-end weight.

He hopes that will allow him to run a 4.4-second 40-yard dash.

"I feel a lot more explosive and fast, so I think that's going to help me translate my game to the NFL," he said.

Still, Bell isn't trying to re-invent himself. He became one of the Big Ten's most punishing rushers last year and although the NFL is beginning to employ more speed backs, there remains a place for bruisers as well.

Bell said he talked to seven or eight teams in his first day at the combine.

"I take pride in (being a big back)," he said. "At Michigan State this past year, I had a lot of yards after contact and that's something I take pride in. That's something I want to continue to do and that's why I don't want to lose too much weight.

"A lot of teams are interested in bigger guys, and I'm happy to be that."