INDIANAPOLIS – Former Clemson defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence confirmed Saturday he has cleared two drug tests since he tested positive for ostarine, a banned performance enhancing drug, prior to Clemson’s Cotton Bowl win over Notre Dame back in December.
The All-American said to The Clemson Insider and the media at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis, Ind., that every NFL team has asked him about the situation at the NFL Scouting Combine, but he has been fully prepared to answer those inquiries and set the record straight.
“Unfortunately, I tested positive for a drug I don’t know how to pronounce,” Lawrence said. “I’m naturally this size, this big. I’ve been this way all my life. There’s no reason for me to do any selfish thing like that. It’s unfortunate that it happened. All I can do is be positive about it.”
Lawrence doesn’t get the sense anyone is skeptical of his story. The projected first-round pick still believes he should be one of the top guys in the 2019 NFL Draft, and the failed test, which Clemson is appealing, will not hold him back.
“I feel like they know that I’m not the type of guy to do anything like that, so they just wanted to catch up on the facts,” he said.
Clemson tight end Braden Galloway and offensive lineman Zach Giella were also suspended for testing positive for ostarine when the NCAA issued a random drug test for PEDs. The incident prevented all three players from competing in the Cotton Bowl and the College Football Playoff National Championship Game.
Lawrence said being suspended from the playoff games were two of the hardest things he’s ever had to do, but he’s used it to show the world who he is to his core and how he handles adversity.
“I love this game. To see something like that make it go away so quick, something I didn’t intentionally do, on the last two games of my (college) career, it was very hard for me to deal with,” Lawrence said. “I kept praying about it and I’m trying to stay strong in my faith and view it as a positive.
“I feel like that happened to help me be able to show my character, show who I really am, show my emotions, show how I handle adversity.”
Clemson is working on appealing the failed drug test to the NCAA, but Lawrence confirmed he’s not involved in the on-going investigation to figure out how the substance entered his body.
Despite the situation, Lawrence has maintained his focus throughout the NFL Scouting Combine, checking in at 6-foot-4 and 4/8 and 342 pounds. His hand is 10 4/8, arm is 34 6/8, with a 84 wingspan. He put up 36 reps of 225 pounds on the bench press on Saturday.
On Sunday, he will finish up his workouts with the 40-yard dash, vertical and broad jump and position drills.
Continuous coverage of the NFL Scouting Combine workouts will be televised on NFL Network.
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