FAYETTEVILLE — Greg Childs is out to remind NFL teams of his potential.
After struggling with injuries and a disappointing NFL combine, Childs looked like the receiver his teammates remembered at Arkansas' pro day on Tuesday.
Childs ran a 4.41-second 40-yard dash, up from a 4.55 at the combine last month. He also recorded impressive marks in agility drills and the weight room, including a vertical jump of 40.5 inches and a broad jump of 10 feet, 7 inches.
"It was just mainly showing everybody that I was healthy again; showing everybody I was 100 percent," Childs said. "I came out here and I had some scouts tell me, 'You look 100 percent. You look as explosive as ever.'"
Childs suffered a season-ending knee injury in 2010. Though he was cleared to practice with the Razorbacks prior to last season, his production dropped dramatically.
After leading the Razorbacks in receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns as a sophomore and junior, Childs had just 21 receptions for 240 yards without scoring a touchdown as a senior.
"I think I came back too fast last year," said Childs, who finished his career with 133 receptions for 2,066 yards and 15 touchdowns. "I didn't want to let my team down. I didn't want to sit out all year. I wanted to help out any way I could."
With a group of receivers that included all-Southeastern Conference selection Jarius Wright and Joe Adams, Childs (6-foot-3, 212 pounds) became largely forgotten nationally.
"It's good to see a good friend come out here and put up great numbers, and see a smile on his face again," said Wright, a teammate of Childs' since high school. "When you see friends happy, it makes you happy."
Childs' 40 time was the fastest of any of the participants Tuesday. Adams ran a 4.55-second 40, while Wright opted not to run the event after clocking a 4.42-second 40 last month in Indianapolis.
Adams' 40 time has been the topic of much discussion in recent weeks. School officials clocked the speedy receiver at 4.30 seconds prior to his senior season.
Adams said he has gained 10 pounds since the end of the football season and is learning to run with the added weight.
Like with Childs, Wright said he believes Adams' game film will tell scouts all they need to know.
"He's got football skills and he's fast when he gets on the football field," Wright said. "I've never seen anyone catch Joe from behind."
Sixteen former Arkansas players worked out on Tuesday in front of representatives from at least 25 different NFL teams.
Childs, Adams and Wright caught passes from former teammate Ryan Mallett, now a quarterback for the New England Patriots.
"It's very different from when I was down in Indy and I had quarterbacks I wasn't familiar with," Childs said. "With Ryan, I played with him for some years now, so it was just like playing catch.
"He could have come back three years from now and it still would have felt the same."
Jake Bequette, who participated in last month's scouting combine, opted not to go through speed or strength drills on Tuesday, citing an injured pectoral muscle. The former first-team all-SEC defensive end did go through position drills with linebackers.
"I was a linebacker today, or at least I was trying to be," Bequette said. "Some teams see me as an outside linebacker in a 3-4 scheme, so I want to show some versatility."
Bequette said he will hold a private weight-lifting workout for scouts ahead of the NFL Draft.