NFL Draft Diamonds Prospect Interview: Alex Pace, DL, University of Cincinnati

NFL Draft Diamonds website has been providing our readers Prospect Interviews over the past 3 years and this year we mixed things up a bit. Our questions are designed to give our readers a little more insight on the draft eligible player. We hope to bring you more than 500 interviews of NFL Draft Prospects this season. You will be able to track them all on the front page of our website in the banner to the right.  Now let’s meet our next prospect!!!!

What is your name? 

Alex D Pace

What is your Height/Weight? 

6’1 300lbs 

What is your position? 

DT/NT

Where do you play college football? 

UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI 

Football is about giving back, what is the coolest thing you have done off the field? 

One of the coolest thing I have gotten to do off the field was going to elementary school to talk to trouble or at risk youth about how sports change my life. 

What was the hardest college class you ever had to take?

The hardest class I took was a Wall Street class. I had to learn about stocks and bonds. Hardest thing I had to learn

Where are you from? 

From the inner city of Cleveland Ohio

Who is your role model, and why? 

Role model would have to be my mother. She never made excuses for her past mistakes put she also didn’t let them define who she is today.

Did you play any other sports growing up? 

I play any sport my school had at the time growing up. So soccer/track/ basketball didn’t play football into I got to high school.

Did you play any other positions in football? 

I use to play FB and some OL in high school.

At your position, what separates you from others? 

I think the thing that separate me from other players in my class is how strong I am at the point of attack. I feel like I play the run game as good or better than anyone. 

When you are breaking down film, what do you look for?

When it comes to breaking down film I look for how good my opponent is. What they do best and what there weak at. Then I look to see how I can take there weaknesses and use it against them.

Who was the toughest player you ever faced? 

Duke Johnson from Miami he was an amazing player.

If you could compare your play to one player in the NFL who would it be and why? 

If I had to pick I would say Ndamukong Suh the way he over power his opponents is how I try to take over games

What was the biggest obstacle in your life you had to overcome, and how did you overcome it? 

Just making it out of the inner city was the biggest and hardest part of my life. I never wanted to just be another angry black male doing nothing with his life in Cleveland. I wanted to better myself so I could one day help my family and give back. 

What is your biggest strength? 

My biggest strength would be how powerful I am and my get off. This really help me out when it comes to playing the run. 

What is your biggest weakness?

My weakness would have to be my pass rush just because at my college we weren’t aloud to rush the passer a lot of the time. So when we did I didn’t feel as effective. 

If I were a GM and gave you a second to sell yourself, what would you say? 

I sell myself on how well I play the run. How I can impact the line of scrimmage. I also take on a lot of double team which frees up my linebackers.

Who was your favorite player and/or NFL team growing up? 

Favorite player would have to be LT or Brian Westbrook. My favorite team would have to be the Cleveland Browns. Anyone who knows me know I’m a died hard browns fan. 

If you could have dinner with three people dead or alive, who would you choose? 

Mike Tyson/ Joe Thomas/  Tom Brady  would be the three people I would want to meet.

What will be the first big item you buy once you are in the NFL?

I would investment my money into a chain restaurant so I could make more money for my family