CARSON, Calif. — The fragile nature of a pro-football audition was on display yesterday during cornerback Ryan Mouton's jaw-dropping and then heart-tugging performances at the Home Depot Center.

During the Pro Day for former University of Hawai'i football players, Mouton had a broad jump of 11 feet — a foot longer than second-place finisher Erik Robinson's effort.

In the next drill, the 40-yard dash, Mouton "tweaked" his left hamstring at the 20-yard mark, and limp-scooted the final 10 yards. He completed the distance in 4.42 seconds, the fastest time among UH's NFL hopefuls.

"I've never seen a guy run that fast on a bad leg," UH head coach Greg McMackin said.

Mouton's performance drew raves from the more than 40 scouts representing all 32 NFL teams.

"He did a nice job," said Andrew Gada, an analyst for www.nfldraftguys.com.

It was the third — and final — leg of an evaluation process for Mouton before the April 25-26 NFL draft. He competed in the East-West Shrine Game in January and the NFL Scouting Combine in February. Now it is left to the scouts and personnel directors to crunch the numbers and figure where Mouton rates as a prospect.

Mouton played well in the all-star game, breaking up a pass in the end zone. He initially pulled his left hamstring during that game.

At the NFL Combine, he had a vertical jump of 39 1/2 inches and a broad jump of 10 feet, 8 inches. But he aggravated his left hamstring in the final quarter of the 40-yard dash, finishing in 4.48 seconds.

His goals for Pro Day were to run a sub-4.4 in the 40, reach 11 feet in the broad jump and perform well in pass-defense drills. He believed he was healthy enough to run the 40, and that the broad jump would not be taxing on his hamstring. He even dropped 6 pounds to help with the sprint.

"Unfortunately, I couldn't do everything because an injury happened," Mouton said.

He said he "got down the track, about 20 yards, and I felt it, (the hamstring) tweaked a little bit. I tried to ease up and get through it, and hoped everything would be OK."

Several scouts assured agent Kenny Zuckerman that the injury-hindered sprints proved Mouton's quickness. But would such factors equate to a sub-4.4 sprint?

"I think so," Zuckerman said, "but every team will look at it differently. If he goes in the 4.3s, he jumps to another tier."

The value of the so-called "measurables" — speed or strength related to build — are in the eye of the clipboard holder.

"All you need," said safety Jacob Patek, who received clearance to compete in his second Pro Day, "is just one team to like you."

David Veikune already has several suitors. He had a solid Senior Bowl, and bench-pressed 225 pounds 35 times at the NFL Combine. For Pro Day, he decided to skip all of the tests except the 40-yard dash, and stand on his combine numbers.

His goal was to complete the 40 in under 4.8 seconds. His two attempts were 4.82 and 4.81.

"I'm a little disappointed," said Veikune, who appeared to lack the "explosiveness" off his start.

But the scouts were more interested in Veikune's footwork. According to several scouts, Veikune showed he is capable of being an effective outside linebacker.

Veikune, who was exclusively a defensive end in UH's 4-3 scheme, is being viewed "primarily as an outside linebacker" by teams running 3-4 defenses. For Veikune, that means lining up out of a two-point stance and learning to drop back into coverage.

"It's a new position, but I'm a football player," Veikune said. "I feel I can adjust."

Linebackers Adam Leonard and Solomon Elimimian — both of whom began training on the Mainland starting within days after the Dec. 24 Sheraton Hawai'i Bowl — had pedestrian numbers in the 40 yesterday. Elimimian, who is suffering from a tight hamstring, had a best of 4.75 seconds. Leonard, who appeared distracted after two false starts, ran 4.88.

"I was disappointed in my (40) time, but I felt good in the linebacker drills," Leonard said.

Elimimian's hamstring problems kept him from participating in the broad jump. But Elimimian, like Leonard and Veikune, showed "game quickness" in linebacker drills. They worked on change of directions, and balance.

Perhaps the biggest surprise was defensive tackle Josh Leonard.

Leonard, rush end Francis Maka and Patek trained at the Ikei Performance facility in Scottsdale, Ariz. The program's director, Chad Ikei, created a workout to help improve Leonard's bench-press technique and 40 time.

Ikei placed restraining bands on a bar bell when Leonard worked with 405-pound weights. Leonard also worked on his reps with 225- and 240-pound weights.

"I wanted to do more reps with lighter weights," Leonard said.

In the first month of a three-month program, Leonard worked on locking his elbows after raising the bench-press weights. Reps may be discounted if a lifter does not fully extend his arms during a bench press.

Yesterday, encouraged by cheering teammates, Leonard bench-pressed 225 pounds 41 times.

He also sprinted 40 yards in 4.99 and 4.93 seconds, and finished the pro-agility test in 4.35 seconds.

"The first three days (of training), we worked on just my start," Leonard said. "It's amazing how much technique is all in your start, your first 10 yards."

Long-snapper Jake Ingram, meanwhile, received tips from Darrin Simmons, who coaches the Cincinnati Bengals' special teams.

Simmons said long-snappers are evaluated on their accuracy, blocking and cover skills.

"I wouldn't be here if Jake couldn't snap (accurately)," Simmons said.

In the NFL, Simmons said, "you only have one punt formation you can use. The (snapper) is always involved in protection."

Most of all, Simmons said, "he has to have a good personality. In the NFL, (the players) don't go to class. They're with you the whole day. Can I stand to be around a guy for the whole day? Jake has a very good personality. I can be around him all day."

Ingram, who weighed 230, said he needs to gain at least another 10 pounds.

"I need carbs," he said, smiling.

Ingram has drawn interest from several teams.

Mouton has a meeting next week with the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Adam Leonard has a private workout with his hometown Seattle Seahawks on Monday.

Veikune is going to visit the Philadelphia Eagles, Miami Dolphins, Tennessee Titans and Dallas Cowboys.

"I'm going to be busy," Veikune said.

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