NFL rookie minicamps are great for long-shot prospects — tryout players have a weekend to try to land a contract that will then give them a small shot to make a roster as an undrafted rookie free agent.

It's not unusual to find small-school standouts with prolific college stats, like Central Missouri's Jaylen Zachery, whose strength lines up with a lingering need for the Bucs: a big-play threat on returns.

Zachery had five returns for touchdowns for the Mules — three on kickoffs, two on punt returns — and caught 18 touchdown passes as well.

"They took a chance on me, and I want to show them what I can do," said Zachery, 6 feet and 185 pounds. "(Returns) are another asset to my game that I bring to the table. It shows I can do more than just play receiver. I have the ability to make people miss in the open field. It's a big part of my game."

Central Missouri plays Division II football — Zachery actually took part in the pro day at another D-2 program, Missouri Western, which is where the Bucs found tackle Leonard Wester as an undrafted rookie two years ago.

The Bucs have had good luck with small-school prospects, getting guard Ali Marpet from Division III Hobart and drafting guard Alex Cappa from Division II Humboldt State last month.

His coach at Central Missouri, Jim Svoboda, said he thinks Zachery can show enough at rookie minicamp to get a longer look from the Bucs.

"He has incredible ball skills and route-running," Svoboda said. "He was such a productive player for us, all four years, a real versatile player. He'll rely more on his hands and his ball skills than just blowing by people, but the truth is the best receivers aren't always the fastest guys."

Zachery has a cool connection to another small-school prospect: His coach at Central Missouri, Jim Svoboda, was the head coach at Nebraska-Wesleyan in 1992-93, working with a defensive tackle named Jason Licht.

How did I not find this before? Great old pic of Bucs GM Jason Licht from his days at Nebraska Wesleyan in 1992-93 @jasonrlicht https://t.co/6latYHrZc7 pic.twitter.com/0blr6sTjt2 — Greg Auman (@gregauman) May 9, 2018

"I've admired how his career has gone, where he started and where he is," he said of the Bucs' general manager. "He started as a scout, worked his way up and now he has one of 32 jobs in the world. He never forgot where he came from."

Licht started his college career as a walk-on Nebraska, but played his last two years at Wesleyan, leading all defensive linemen in tackles both seasons.

"He was just extremely grateful that he had an opportunity to play football again. He never big-timed anybody," Svoboda said. "He fit in, he was a good leader. Those guys really make a difference in your program when you have that enthusiasm and passion to play the game."