photo by: AP Photo/Michael Conroy

Kansas defensive lineman Austin Booker runs a drill at the NFL football scouting combine, Thursday, Feb. 29, 2024, in Indianapolis.

As a slew of departing Jayhawks angle for favorable positioning ahead of next month’s NFL draft, a total of 16 are participating in a new event hosted by the Big 12 Conference.

For the first time, the Big 12 is holding a centralized Pro Day that encompasses all the league’s members, instead of the individual school-specific events that have taken place in the past.

The event, which is taking place at Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas (the Dallas Cowboys’ practice facility), officially began Wednesday and will feature workouts for quarterbacks, wide receivers, tight ends, running backs and defensive backs on Thursday, as well as specialists, linemen and linebackers on Saturday.

KU will be represented by quarterback Jason Bean; running back Dylan McDuffie; tight end Mason Fairchild; offensive linemen Mike Novitsky and Dominick Puni; defensive linemen Austin Booker, Patrick Joyner and Devin Phillips; linebackers Hayden Hatcher (a defensive end during his time at KU), Rich Miller and Craig Young; defensive backs Kalon Gervin, Kwinton Lassiter, Kenny Logan Jr. and Andrew Russell; and kicker Seth Keller.

Puni and Booker have established themselves as the foremost KU prospects in this year’s draft class. Both participated in the prestigious Senior Bowl all-star game and then the NFL Scouting Combine a month ago. Booker declared early for the draft after one season with the Jayhawks, while Puni exhausted his eligibility following four seasons at Central Missouri and two at KU.

Elsewhere this offseason, Fairchild and Logan were in Frisco for the East-West Shrine Bowl, Bean and Young in Orlando, Florida, for the Hula Bowl and Joyner, Miller and Lassiter in Daytona Beach, Florida, for the Tropical Bowl.

Bean was also invited to the Shrine Bowl following his week at the Hula Bowl but had to drop out due to illness.

The Big 12 Pro Day will essentially resemble a localized version of the NFL Combine that will provide the chance for more than seven times as many KU athletes to display their on-field potential. It is also slated to feature professional development opportunities for the attendees.

Kansas offensive lineman Dominick Puni runs a drill at the NFL football scouting combine, Sunday, March 3, 2024, in Indianapolis.

photo by: AP Photo/Julio Cortez

West’s Mason Fairchild, of Kansas, participates in the East West Shrine Bowl NCAA college football game in Frisco, Texas, Thursday, Feb. 1, 2024.

photo by: AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez

East’s Kenny Logan, of Kansas, returns a kick during the East West Shrine Bowl NCAA college football game in Frisco, Texas, Thursday, Feb. 1, 2024.

photo by: Henry Greenstein/Journal-World

Kansas quarterback Jason Bean drops back during a pass-blocking drill in Hula Bowl practice at Nicholson Fieldhouse in Orlando, Fla., on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2024.

photo by: Henry Greenstein/Journal-World

Kansas linebacker Craig Young goes through drills at Hula Bowl practice at Nicholson Fieldhouse in Orlando, Fla., on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2024.