DaytonDailyNews.com

MOBILE, Ala. — Two area prospects, Notre Dame safety David Bruton (Miamisburg) and Ohio State linebacker Marcus Freeman (Wayne), impressed NFL scouts with their performances in the practices leading up to Saturday's Senior Bowl.

The 6-foot-2, 210-pound Bruton has impressed scouts with his playmaking ability and ball-hawking skills. He is seemingly always around the ball, showing very good instincts and explosion at the point of attack. It's not surprising that Bruton has shown he can play in space, but he still must show that he can play inside the box against the run.

I had one Jacksonville Jaguars scout who interviewed Bruton tell me that he's like a sponge and is extremely focused when processing information.

Freeman's play has been steady throughout the week, displaying solid technique, good ball awareness and outstanding sideline-to-sideline speed.

Freeman had the play of the day in Wednesday's practice when he intercepted a pass thrown to Purdue running back Kory Sheets, who bobbled the ball. The linebacker dropped out of coverage to make the play.

The one knock on Freeman from scouts is that the former Wayne star lacks aggression. However, he demonstrated some on the interception when he wrestled the ball away from Sheets before the two hit the turf.

The Cleveland Browns and New Orleans Saints spent a lot of time interviewing Freeman.

Mickens missing in action

A notable absence from Tuesday morning's practice was Cincinnati cornerback Mike Mickens. The 5-foot-10, 176-pound Mickens is a scratch from the Senior Bowl roster with what is being described as a recurring knee injury. Mickens had surgery in November to repair torn cartilage in his left knee.

Mickens said after practice on Monday that he came to Mobile to show scouts he has recovered from the knee injury, but apparently he experienced some discomfort with the knee after one practice. Needless to say, Mickens' performance Monday was less than stellar.

He has been replaced on the roster by Michigan Wolverines cornerback Morgan Trent.

What Big C is hearing

It's unanimous. The one prospect NFL scouts were hoping to see in Mobile was Michigan State running back Javon Ringer. The nation's fourth-leading rusher pulled out of the Senior Bowl with an apparent knee injury days before he was due to report.

Unfortunately for Ringer, teams not necessarily interested in taking a running back in the draft wanted to see him perform against the All-Star talent. Minnesota Vikings running backs coach Eric Bieniemy was among those who wanted to get a glimpse at the dynamic runner.

According to some scouts, if there was any prospect who could have helped his cause considerably in the draft by participating, it was Ringer. With a number of underclassmen at the position declaring themselves eligible for April's draft, Ringer will have his work cut out for him.

I was told by scouts that he will need to run in the mid to low 4.4's in the 40-yard dash at the Combine next month in order to see his draft stock rise.

Carlos "Big C" Holmes covers the NFL for the Dayton Daily News.

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