For Bolles alum Jack Pyburn, move to LSU revived his NFL hopes

INDIANAPOLIS — Through the underwhelming statistics and the season-ending injury in 2023, Jack Pyburn never got to the point where football stopped being fun. No, from The Bolles School in Jacksonville to the Florida program, the fire still burned.

“I never lost the love of football,” he said. “It’s the game I want to play as long as I can.”

But something had to change. Pyburn transferred from Florida to LSU for his final season, a move that helped him earn a spot at last week’s scouting combine.

Playing for the Tigers, Pyburn set career highs in starts (11), tackles for lost yardage (5 1/2) and sacks (two), production that will likely give him a chance to play in the NFL this year.

“It was a blessing to attend (LSU),” Pyburn said. “I had a great experience and a great time and it was fun playing in front of those fans.

“I love football and I love SEC football so any time I got to showcase my talent and play the game I love, it was awesome.”

Bolles to Florida

It is clear the influence Bolles had on Pyburn’s journey. In between questions about LSU and the NFL, he gladly went back to talk about his time with the Bulldogs.

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Pyburn credits Bolles coach Matt Toblin for helping his development.

“When he came in my sophomore year, he had a massive impact,” Pyburn said. “We ran a more complicated scheme than other teams so that taught me to play ball at a high level and transition to college.”

Pyburn won a wrestling state championship his senior year.

“I feel like wrestling was awesome for me to maintain my base, my leverage and my strength points, and just be able to move in whatever weird position you can get caught in as a d-lineman,” he said.

As a senior at Bolles in 2021, Pyburn had 109 tackles and 14 sacks, helping him earn three-star recruiting status. He stayed in-state to play for the Gators.

Things, though, simply didn’t materialize.

Freshman year: Three tackles in eight games.

Sophomore year: Nine games before tearing his ACL (17 tackles).

Junior year: Sixty tackles in 12 games (eight starts), but only one sack.

“I wouldn’t call it frustrating,” he said of playing for Florida. “I enjoyed my experience and wouldn’t take it back for anything.”

Pyburn isn’t alone in succeeding after leaving the Gators. He was one of six players at the combine who started their careers at Florida, but transferred out: Defensive tackle Chris McClellan (Missouri), linebacker Scooby Williams (Texas A&M), receiver Caleb Douglas (Texas Tech) and guards Joshua Braun and Jalen Farmer (both Kentucky).

Apparently, the former Florida staffs knew how to recruit talent, but develop and retain that talent? Not so much.

Pyburn was in the portal for a whopping four days in December 2024 before he committed to LSU.

Versatility will be key in NFL

For LSU, Pyburn had a tackle in all 12 games and at least four tackles in eight games (52 total). He credits defensive coordinator Blake Baker for taking advantage of his versatility.

“Blake is an awesome guy, great mentor and great defensive coordinator,” Pyburn said. “His schemes were extremely aggressive, which fits my mantra of playing with violence and physicality.

“I felt he did a great job of moving me around on third down and putting me in position to win. He used me in all kinds of situations.”

Among those roles besides the occasional drop into coverage: The 9- (outside of the tight end), 6- (head-up on the tight end), 5- (outside shoulder of the offensive tackle) and 4I-technique (inside shoulder of the offensive tackle) spots.

Pyburn had six tackles against South Carolina, Arkansas and Oklahoma and seven tackles in the loss to Texas A&M.

“He brought energy with how hard he played,” LSU teammate Patrick Payton said. “He’s a guy who may have been overlooked but he had that underdog mentality and that helped the whole defense.”

Pyburn wants to play at 260-265 pounds in the NFL and said teams project him as a strong-side defensive end … but not strictly a strong-side defensive end. Maybe a stand-up outside linebacker in a 3-4 front.

“Teams see me differently, but versatile,” he said.

Pyburn, who traveled to Phoenix to train for the combine, hopes his motor earns him an NFL shot.

“You can’t teach effort,” he said. “Effort, a lot of times, is a true mark to see if a guy has what it takes.”

Contact O’Halloran at rohalloran@gannett.com

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jack Pyburn at the Combine: Transfer to LSU boosted NFL draft hopes