Arizona Cardinals 4th Round STEAL? Coach Reveals Why Kaleb Proctor Is a Hidden Gem

Did the Arizona Cardinals find the hidden dream of the 2026 NFL draft in the 4th round and in the first FCS player

Taken we go out to his college southeastern Louisiana Frank Skelfo the head coach down there coach

Thank you for joining us

Appreciate you having me on Bob. We're gonna get it right from the beginning now. It's cell phone cell phone

Silent that's okay though. Yeah, that's a it's a common mistake

But I fix it right off the bat and we're good to go well

I appreciate you keeping me on his coach coach Frank Selfo joins us spent some time down in the Puebla Tucson

There is long career with the Arizona Nick Foles very familiar name. I think for college and pro fans

Let me ask you though. This is about Caleb Proctor who comes in just

Really athletic as they come or he's the first FCS player off the board

What gave Caleb the ability to get kind of that that honor in the 4th round going to the Cardinals?

I think the big thing for him this past year was

Him staying with us and playing every day and that's the thing a lot of these guys are missing both the

It's always chasing the dollar and what Caleb did he had an opportunity to go chase a bunch

There was a lot of people that were after him after

At Christmas and he we said I had some great conversations talked to his family about it

He spent a lot of time in the woods hunting squirrels and everything else trying to figure it out and

And when he told me the numbers. I said you really got to take a look at it

This is for you from where you're from in your background. This is really a

great opportunity

But you got to understand that and he asked me said do you think I can go to the next I said I know you can

Yeah, and I've been there. I know it you belong there

So if you give yourself a chance

You'll be able to get there. I don't know if they're paying you starter money. They're paying you back up money right now

So somebody schools got either up to Annie or stay here roll a dice and bet on yourself and that's what he did

Yeah, you tweeted it out. I thought it was great

You know, this is possible when you give yourself a chance to grow and develop

Believe in you from from your own account their coach self. Oh and

What goes more into it because this day and age you're getting pulled from so many different directions

I mean we heard similar things about the Cardinals top pick Jeremiah love

He had seven figure offers and he just felt like the fit was best for him at Notre Dame

He bet on himself in that sense

He goes third overall with Caleb

Was it a matter of just the program the the brotherhood there the coaching staff what what else went into that?

You know, but we we had 25 seniors this year and all 25 of them graduated

We had a mature group of guys that he grew up with and it speaks volumes for our culture

And he was one of the head head head guys in our culture that ran a locker room

And I think when you look at him and what he's all about and then look at our program

We're all about it fit when you talk about the fit and Jeremiah love you're saying the exact same thing

He fit here. He fit with these guys and he came out later on and said look

I'm these guys are going to be in my wedding who do all I want to look over in the fourth quarter when everything's getting tough

And we're not cutting time. I want to look over to God never played with or a guy that's going to be in my wedding someday and

You know, he made that decision and one of the lines that he told me and I'll never forget this

He said coach when we when he told me he was going to come back

And I said, you know, what about the money? I said you talk to your mom. I'll talk to her again

And he said coach, I've been praying on it and my preacher told me

Orgives you something that you really don't need and he said I don't need it right now

I'm gonna I'm gonna get it later on. I don't need it right now

And I went oh my goodness. You're you're more mature than I am buddy

And that's the kind of guy is you know

That's a beautiful thing. I mean, that's a true testament to the character the the player the person

And Caleb Proctor and you love to hear those stories when you know on the other end of this thing

There's guys who's going for straight money grabs

But for somebody to kind of wanted to see it through there and finish it with with the guys

He went to battle with consistently that's that's something special there. Let's talk about the player

What I saw on the ESPN broadcast cracked me up and got me fired up for is a Cardinals fan that

You know you're playing at the FCS level, but he killed LSU

What what kind of was that kind of a coming out party for somebody that Caleb Proctor and how did he make that happen?

Well, I think for everybody else it was coming out for us. It wasn't

I said it at the media days the conference media. I said we got the best defensive player in the country

Maybe the best I mean the best defensive lineman in the country

Maybe the best defensive player in FCS football

But I know he belongs in that conversation. It no matter what level we're at and we had seen it

We've seen the work ethic. We saw who he was his size his athleticism his ability to bend

His the way he can redirect all of those things and when it happened against LSU

Look, there's got to be a legitimate

I guess

adversary, you know for somebody really take notice and everybody took notice when he had the game that he had

and even LSU fans were just really complimentary of him and

I think it was I think you put him on a radar with everybody. He continued to play that well

Play that way the rest of the season

just you know

Everything that he imagined and dreamed of doing he was able to do and he was a great leader for us

Coach during your long impressive career. You've made stops at all levels

We talked about U of A and then also Jacksonville at the NFL level and a couple other stops

I mean you've seen it all you've seen every level of competition

What gives you confidence that he's gonna translate and what are some of the things that you know

It's gonna be maybe a little bit tough for him going from

FCS to the NFL right away

Yeah, I look at the the speed of the game obviously right and the players are just a whole lot bigger and stronger and faster simple as that

But I think he'll adjust his work ethic is really is really too good

And he's got a lot of confidence in himself

You know they talk about his size and I and I agree with him. I don't disagree with that

I think that's a knock or our legitimate knock on him being a 295

But I think when you watch him run watch him move watch him bend

The way he can escape and get off of blocks. He's got long arms. He's high-hipped

He came in we took him as a linebacker and said he's gonna probably play defensive in and he continued to grow

He's young. I think he's got a tremendous upside. I don't think it's gonna take him long to figure it out

He's gonna see that the offensive lineman are really good right and he's gonna see those on a regular basis

But what I think his ability to adjust in his work ethic is gonna give him a chance to be a I think an impact guy

Pretty soon not even that year one or even year two, but I think he's gonna play getting a rotation

Probably be a rush guy early on you know third downs

And then growing to something a little bit bigger

Yeah, I mean we were talking to people after the college season ended

About 275 and then probably around the 280 mark. Yeah, okay

He lost some weight during the course of the season sure did

But then he bulked it back on over the next couple months and when he when he measured in when he weighed in in the combine

He's over 290. I mean and he insight what was he putting back there to gain that weight good weight apparently

They're in the pre draft. He did he got a high ankle sprained during the course of the season

So I had to back off a little bit right and then

When he ran at the combine he ran 479 at the combine at 291 and then his pro day was here

What maybe six weeks later and weighed in at 295 and was still able to do all the things that he needed to do at that weight

And that's what I keep talking about that with the guys

I still in contact with general managers and things like that, but the his ability

To grow. I think he's young. He's a young body and I think he's just naturally gonna grow, you know

When we look at this and there's one thing I can't overlook during our time together with

Frank Selfo here of the southeastern Louisiana

You mentioned he was squirrel hunting and then also use the phrase not cut and then I mean

Those are we were gonna get some of that from from proctor 2

I mean it's the squirrel hunting thing is that real

Yeah, you're not gonna catch him in the clubs in the right you're not gonna catch him out

That's not his deal. He would rather go

I already talked to him about this not many squirrels out there in Arizona. It's okay

I can tell you that so he would love to have find a place to hunt fish

Do things like that and get away from all the mess. He's

Y'all won't have to worry about finding him out running the streets of Scottsdale. I promise you that

That's a big they look that's that's one of those things that can't be discounted people out in old town

A42 often. It's it's sank many an NFL career here for the Cardinals

So that's good to know. It's just different mountain types, right? It's the it's the red rock

It's the naked mountains. It's not the the ones. I'm sure he's used to that are covered in trees

So that should be a big transition for the kid. It is bobo. What you what you're gonna see with him

You're gonna see him. He's very personable. So when people go to talk to him

You're gonna be able to spend a lot of time with him. He

Once he gets where he really trust you and you're gonna just still just unload on you

He's uh, he might come off as quiet early on because he's not quite sure

But you know, it just comes from a small town in North Louisiana

grew up hunting fishing came down here to Hammond America and

You know the played now he's going to the big city, right? And he's gonna have to figure it out a little bit

But as as far as a person is concerned once you guys get to know him, you're gonna fall in love with him

I can't wait to do it. I'm sure he'll be uh, we'll get that introductory presser before we know it

But uh, one thing I found out during this 18 lines

Southeast and Louisiana lions have made their way to the NFL and the Arizona Cardinals lead the way

Having uh six of them during that tenure. So this is even though it uh, it seems like it was out of the

At a nowhere Cardinals are no stranger to uh, picking out of the Southland conference their coach

Yeah, the uh, you know, we got some good ball players here, you know, just simple as that. They've got

We've lost them. I mean our guys love we had another guy that was that LSU this year and got drafted in the six round

But he was here for three years

With Caleb and uh, so we all of the guys in our conference. It's but it's just look it's ball, right?

That's what the atmosphere is the p4s are gonna take it from the g6 is gonna take it from us

And then it just filters down

But uh the Southland had two draft picks this year

Which is the same amount as the sun belt and one more than conference USA

So there's good ball here that we the you know, look balls ball

Yeah, you just got to play and I think that was a big thing the Caleb saw was it

I just need to play I just got to play every day and then I'll show them what I can do

Yeah, I mean like you got more draft picks than coach prime there at Colorado

I'm saying it you're not saying it. I mean we cover the big 12 here

We're seeing that that's that's incredible. That's a that's a badge of honor. I you should wear a proudly

Coach has been incredible conversation

Can't wait to meet your former player now Caleb proctor and in the best of continued success to you down there at southeastern Louisiana

Thank you, bro. I appreciate it take care of him. He'll take care of y'all and I'm telling you the cardination of falling love with this guy every

Everybody everybody will thank you so much and look forward to seeing you and talking till you again