Shilo Sanders Brings the Combine to Colorado After Not Getting Invited to the Official One

Instead of dwelling on his absence from the NFL’s 2025 Combine invite list, Shilo Sanders took matters into his own hands, bringing Zybek Sports—the makers of the official timing system used at the official event—to the Buffaloes’ facility in Boulder.

In his latest YouTube video, the Colorado Buffs safety revealed that he is using Zybek Sports’ Combine Testing Equipment to prepare himself for the Colorado Pro Day. “I didn’t get invited to the combine, so they brought the combine to me,” Shilo can be heard saying in the beginning.

At first glance, Zybek’s testing equipment may not seem flashy, but its capabilities go beyond appearances. One of its key features is the ability to capture six frames of an athlete at the start of a 40-yard dash, including one frame before the timer begins and another within 0.1 seconds after.

As per Zybek’s representative, these frames are crucial indicators of an athlete’s initial posture, a metric that helps understand how an athlete will fare in the run.

“I’ve seen countless 40-yard dashes. We capture six frames of every athlete at the start, including a frame before the timer begins, and another 0.1 seconds after. These crucial early steps determine success or failure,” the Zybek rep said.

The equipment also monitors athletes’ frames throughout the entire race, providing additional data points for someone like Shilo Sanders to analyze. For instance, based on Zybek’s 14-year association with the NFL and data from 748 athletes, it’s known that a defensive back’s Combine time averages around 4.51 seconds.

The data also shows that if an athlete has an explosive start in the first 10 yards, he can trim 0.1 to 0.2 seconds from his final time. Though these numbers may seem small, in the context of the Combine, they could elevate Shilo Sanders from an average athlete to the top 25%.

“Right now, based on 748 runs at the NFL Combine, the average time for a defensive back is 4.51 seconds. But if you can shave off just 0.1 seconds, that takes you from average to top 25%—a game-changing difference,” informed the Zybek rep to Shilo.

Shilo’s association with Boulder’s very own sports tech company will benefit him in two ways—preparing him for a setting similar to the NFL Combine testing system and allowing him to use Zybek’s database and analysis to improve his speed.

The latter is extremely crucial for the Buffs’ safety, considering 40-yard dashes show NFL scouts who the better athlete is—a key differentiator when judging two players of similar caliber.

All that said, Shilo seems determined to not let an invitation define his NFL future. The big league may not have wanted the star safety at Indianapolis, but by bringing the Combine experience to Boulder, he’s making sure that teams can’t ignore him at Colorado’s Pro Day.