Ryan Otten is back on his feet, back to his normal weight and, after a scary diversion, back on track to be selected in the NFL draft next month.
The former Del Oro High School tight end took part in San Jose State's pro day Friday, catching passes from alumnus Jeff Garcia and running the 40-yard dash for the first time for NFL scouts. Otten didn't take part in last month's scouting combine in Indianapolis because he was recovering from a serious staph infection that caused him to lose more than 20 pounds and required a daily regimen of intravenous antibiotics.
The illness hit Otten in late January at the Senior Bowl. Otten was battling the flu, and a cut on his finger in the middle of the week became infected, causing him to go to a Mobile, Ala., hospital after the game. His weight, about 243 pounds during his senior season with the Spartans, eventually dropped to 217 pounds.
Otten was back to 242 pounds Friday, and he ran his 40-yard dash in 4.68 seconds. His father, Steve, said even after the antibiotics treatment ended in mid-February, it took a week for his son's digestive tract to return to normal.
"Two weeks from now, he'll be even further along," Steve Otten said. "He still probably can add another 5 pounds of muscle."
Ryan Otten said he was 100 percent. He's already had private workouts with two teams, and he chatted with 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh at San Jose State on Thursday. Harbaugh was there to watch practice and talk to the team afterward.
Otten's forte is pass catching, and that strength was on display as he caught passes from Garcia, the former 49ers quarterback. Otten saw about 20 passes and didn't have any drops.
Scouts from 26 NFL teams were on hand, including from the Raiders and 49ers.
Read Matthew Barrows' blogs and archives at www.sacbee.com/sf49ers and listen for his reports Tuesdays on ESPN Radio 1320. Follow him on Twitter @mattbarrows.
© Copyright The Sacramento Bee. All rights reserved.
• Read more articles by Matthew Barrows
What You Should Know About Comments on Sacbee.com
Sacbee.com is happy to provide a forum for reader interaction, discussion, feedback and reaction to our stories. However, we reserve the right to delete inappropriate comments or ban users who can't play nice. (See our full terms of service here.)
Here are some rules of the road:
• Keep your comments civil. Don't insult one another or the subjects of our articles. If you think a comment violates our guidelines click the "Report Abuse" link to notify the moderators. Responding to the comment will only encourage bad behavior.
• Don't use profanities, vulgarities or hate speech. This is a general interest news site. Sometimes, there are children present. Don't say anything in a way you wouldn't want your own child to hear.
• Do not attack other users; focus your comments on issues, not individuals.
• Stay on topic. Only post comments relevant to the article at hand.
• Do not copy and paste outside material into the comment box.
• Don't repeat the same comment over and over. We heard you the first time.
• Do not use the commenting system for advertising. That's spam and it isn't allowed.
• Don't use all capital letters. That's akin to yelling and not appreciated by the audience.
• Don't flag other users' comments just because you don't agree with their point of view. Please only flag comments that violate these guidelines.
You should also know that The Sacramento Bee does not screen comments before they are posted. You are more likely to see inappropriate comments before our staff does, so we ask that you click the "Report Abuse" link to submit those comments for moderator review. You also may notify us via email at feedback@sacbee.com. Note the headline on which the comment is made and tell us the profile name of the user who made the comment. Remember, comment moderation is subjective. You may find some material objectionable that we won't and vice versa.
If you submit a comment, the user name of your account will appear along with it. Users cannot remove their own comments once they have submitted them.
Order Reprint
About Comments
Reader comments on Sacbee.com are the opinions of the writer, not The Sacramento Bee. If you see an objectionable comment, click the "Report Abuse" link below it. We will delete comments containing inappropriate links, obscenities, hate speech, and personal attacks. Flagrant or repeat violators will be banned. See more about comments here.