Connor Neal | April 5th, 2020

James Proche, WR, SMU #3

Height: 5’10”

Weight: 210 pounds

Year: fifth-year Senior

Games Watched: FAU (2019), Temple (2019), Cincinnati (2018)

Proche is the most underrated wide receiver in this deep class. He has quite possibly the best hands out of all receivers. Right now, Proche is my wide receiver 11 in this class while others like, Matt Miller, has him being the wide receiver 30, which is far too low.

Part of the reason Proche might not be getting the hype he deserves is that he is from SMU, a football program that has been pretty bad since the team got suspended for two seasons in 1987. SMU hadn’t finished a season 10-3 record (or better) since 1984, right before the team got suspended. Proche was easily SMU’s best player, on offense or defense.

As you can see below, my grading scale is out of 100 and is graded based on 10 skills: hands, contested catch, route running, release/separation, athleticism, speed, quickness, yards after the catch, red zone threat, and blocking.

Make sure to check out all of our other scouting reports here.

Hands: 14.5/15 Proche has some of the best hands in this class. While watching his film, he rarely had any drops. Instead of seeing drops, you will see some acrobatic catches. Contested Catch: 13/15 Due to Proche’s smaller frame, he isn’t the best contested-catch receiver. Yet, at the same time for a 5’10” wide receiver, Proche isn’t shy to fight with defenders and attacking the ball at its highpoint. Route Running: 7/10 Not an ankle-breaking type of receiver but he gets the job done. He wins at the point of attack instead of at the line of scrimmage. Release/Separation: 7.5/10 Proche doesn’t typically get the best separation between himself and the defender, but he does get just enough to where it isn’t too big of a concern. Athleticism: 8/10 Proche has some wild diving catches and catches over the defenders guarding him. Most of the time Proche can beat the defender despite them frequently being taller. Speed: 7/10 Proche is definitely not a burner. He isn’t very quick for being a smaller guy, but his competitiveness makes up for the lack of speed. Quickness: 8/10 Although Proche’s long speed isn’t good, he is pretty quick when it comes to running closer to the line of scrimmage. His acceleration is pretty nice for his lack of speed. Yards After Catch: 7.5/10 Proche isn’t good nor bad with yards after the catch. Proche will sometimes break away from defenders but most of the time he won’t get you many yards after he catches the ball. Redzone Threat: 3.5/5 Proche isn’t the best red zone target, but he’ll get the job done when you need him to. Blocking: 2.5/5 Due to Proche’s smaller frame, blocking is tricky for him. He isn’t the worst but he is far from impactful. He isn’t a reliable blocker for the ball carrier.

Total: 78.5/100

Round Grade: 3rd Round

Projected Round: Day 3 (Round 6-7)

Wide Receiver Rank: WR11

Proche is a steal for any team that pulls the trigger on him on day three. If a team does shock us and take him during day two, I wouldn’t blame them. I would too.

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