SOUTH BEND (AP) — Former Notre Dame tight end John Carlson walked off the Loftus Center field with his shirt drenched with sweat and a smile covering his face.

Carlson missed the Senior Bowl in January because a parasite made him so ill he lost 17 pounds. He struggled at the NFL combine last month because he still hadn't regained his strength. On Wednesday, Carlson was finally able to show scouts his athletic ability. He was one of nine former Irish players to work out for 31 scouts from 23 NFL teams at Notre Dame's Pro Day.

"This was kind of my third and last chance to show people what I can do in this type of setting. So I put a lot of pressure on myself," Carlson said. "But I also viewed it as an opportunity. I felt fortunate to have today as kind of a second chance."

Carlson made the most of his opportunity. He ran times of 4.67 and 4.72 in the 40-yard dash Wednesday, well below the 4.89 he ran in Indianapolis. He also improved his vertical jump to 35.5 inches from 30.5 inches last month. The only area he didn't improve significantly was bench pressing 225 pounds, doing 21 repetitions on Wednesday, one more than last month.

"He's really helping himself," Notre Dame coach Charlie Weis said as he watched Carlson go through some position drills.

The 6-foot-6, 259-pound Carlson went through the longest workout of the former Irish players. He started by running pass routes, alternating with tailback Travis Thomas catching passes from quarterbacks coach Ron Powlus. Then he did some line drills, alternating with center John Sullivan. Then finally he did some work on his own, including standing with his hands behind his back as one large NFL scout pushed him and pulled him while trying to knock him off balance.

Weis said the attention was a good sign.

"Being an old pro coach, I can tell you that the reason you work them out more is because you become more interested as the drill goes on, not because you become less interested," he said.

Carlson had a stellar season in 2006, with 47 catches for 634 yards. His numbers were down significantly last year, with 40 catches for 372 as the Irish struggled to a 3-9 record. But he's still considered one of the top tight ends coming out this season.

Carlson said it doesn't bother him that he has to prove himself all over again, saying he views the whole process as an extended job interview.

"I'm going to do everything I can do, and anything coaches want me to do in terms of workouts, or meetings or interviews or anything to improve my status as a football player," he said.

Defensive end Trevor Laws and center John Sullivan did only position drills, saying they were pleased with the numbers they posted at the combine. Laws said his main goal was to show scouts he could move well.

"Just show that at 305 pounds I'm still athletic, agile and can move around and my numbers at the combine, certain drills I did really well with, translate into on-the-field stuff," he said. "I think I did. I hope I did."

Sullivan said there wasn't as much pressure at Pro Day as there was at the Senior Bowl and the combine.

"But you just have to enjoy the chances you have to go out and compete and show what you can do. That's what today was, so it was a fun day," he said.

The other former Irish players taking part were safety Tom Zbikowski, linebacker Joe Brockington, defensive end Dwight Stephenson Jr., long snapper J.J. Jansen and punter Geoff Price.