Day One of the 2025 East-West Shrine Bowl practices has ended, and several players put up notable performances on the day. As players from all sorts of backgrounds competed to help improve their draft stock, iron sharpened iron today.

The East Team had some terrific battles up front between the offensive and defensive lines all day. The defensive backs made plenty of plays as well throughout. 

Who stood out after Day One?

Ten Shrine Bowl East Team standouts from Day One

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Kansas OL Bryce Cabeldue

Bryce Cabeldue was a favorite of mine entering the day and I thought he acquitted himself well throughout the day, especially some reps out at left tackle. His fluidity popped at practice and it's easy to see his physicality and hand placement translating to handling these drills.

I initially thought he might be a guard at the next level, but he might be changing my opinions on himself here at Shrine. 

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Tennessee WR Dont'e Thornton

Dont'e Thornton is an intriguing developmental wide receiver option with his athletic gifts, and he showed out throughout practice. It's easy to see the movement skills he brings to the table. It wasn't a terrific practice for the WRs overall, but Thornton drew plenty of eyes on the day. 

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Oregon State OL Joshua Gray & Gerad Christian-Lichtenhan

Joshua Gray took plenty of snaps at center throughout practice, which might be his NFL home, and handled that adjustment with aplomb. His quickness out of his stance popped and he rarely lost a rep. 

His teammate, Gerad Christian-Lichtenhan, didn't enter the Shrine Bowl with much buzz, but he caught my eye often as well. He looked smooth and well-balanced throughout drills, and I found myself itching to dig into his tape more after his performance today. 

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Middlebury OL Thomas Perry

Thomas Perry stole the show from me all day in practice. He's a rare mover at the pivot spot and blends that with good technique and very good play strength. I think he might be the biggest overall riser. He's aiming to break the bench press record at the NFL Combine, and he's got a good chance to do so. 

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UCLA LB Kain Medrano

The linebackers had a good day across the board, but Kain Medrano stood out to me throughout Day one of practice. His athleticism stood out in this linebacker group, especially out in coverage. Medrano made a great break on the ball to pick off a pass in one-on-ones and had scouts buzzing. 

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Georgia Tech DT Zeek Biggers

Zeek Biggers backed up his last name with his measurements, coming in at 6'5, 320 pounds with 35-inch arms. He dominated reps in one-on-ones and was rarely pushed around in drills working against double teams. 

His play strength and athleticism had plenty of the scouts I was around raving. 

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Cal Poly EDGE Elijah Ponder

A 4.0 student in Architectural Studies, Elijah Ponder's length and athleticism popped out in drills. His first step off the line saw him winning plenty of reps right off the bat, and that quickness translated into good speed-to-power in other drills. 

Ponder turned down offers to move up to top FBS schools last year, and he's proving why so far at Shrine Bowl. 

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Arizona RB Jacory Croskey-Merritt

Leaving practice, I overheard multiple scouts raving about Jacory Croskey-Merritt, and it's easy to see why. He's a quick, twitchy runner who is one of the best playmakers in space in this draft class. His athletic tools let him string together multiple moves with ease, and he showed out throughout the day. 

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Kansas CB Cobee Bryant

Probably my personal favorite player entering the Shrine Bowl, Cobee Bryant showed up at just 171 pounds, but he plays so much bigger than that size. He's a gifted athlete who chirped constantly throughout practice. 

With good fluidity and ball skills, Bryant shut down plenty of reps today and earned himself some fans among scouts today. 

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Honorable Mentions

• Oklahoma State OT Dalton Cooper
• NC State OL Tim McKay
• NDSU QB Cam Miller 
• Miami (FL) EDGE Tyler Baron 
• Lindenwood OL Gareth Warren