He led with his right shoulder, smashing into Connecticut tight end Sean McQuillan with enough force to send McQuillan flying off his feet.

After the play, however, Dexter McDougle remained on the Rentschler Field turf, grimacing in pain. A few trainers attended to the Terrapins football cornerback’s shoulder for several moments, and McDougle was eventually assisted off the field and into the locker room.

The injury came just minutes after the senior returned an interception for a touchdown in the Terps’ 32-21 win at UConn on Sept. 14 — his second pick of the night. But it would be his final game, as the serious shoulder injury ended the senior’s college career.

With the NFL draft approaching on May 8, McDougle and other Terps participated in drills yesterday for NFL scouts and coaches on pro day at Byrd Stadium. For McDougle, whose injury prevented him from competing in the NFL combine in February, it was the first opportunity to demonstrate his skills since the injury.

So before he took the field, McDougle couldn’t help but get a bit emotional when a professional coach asked him if he enjoyed the sport.

“I love football,” McDougle said. “There were a couple tears coming, man. This is really my life. This is real. I’m trying to live my dream.”

Some other key contributors from the Terps defense also participated yesterday. Linebacker Marcus Whitfield and cornerback Isaac Goins completed a series of drills including the bench press, 40-yard dash and vertical jump.

Whitfield showed off his athletic ability in the standing long jump, jumping 10 feet, 2 inches. He also posted 18 reps on the bench press and a 31-inch vertical jump. He said wasn’t intimidated by the bevy of NFL representatives watching him.

“Really I just treat it like another Saturday game,” Whitfield said. “They’re usually there watching the game anyway. A lot of people are watching that game, so I just try to take it as if it’s another Saturday.”

While Whitfield was one of the Terps’ top linebackers last season, Demetrius Hartsfield occupied a similar role in 2012. Hartsfield tore his ACL on Nov. 3, 2012, putting his professional dreams on hold. He declined an invitation last June to go to the Cleveland Browns’ minicamp because he wasn’t fully healthy. Now, he said, he feels back to normal.

“I’m not going to lie: When I got here, I was a little nervous,” Hartsfield said. “Once I got out here and saw the fellas and everybody, [it] was just regular football. Dream about it every day. Once I got out there, I got confident.”

While Hartsfield and Whitfield posted solid numbers in the workouts, coaches were likely most intrigued by McDougle’s performance. CBSSports.com ranked the 5-foot-10 McDougle as the 38th-best cornerback in the draft class and projects him to go in the seventh round.

In his first public showcase since September, McDougle performed well. While he didn’t bench press, he ran a 4.45 in the 40-yard-dash and registered a 37-inch vertical jump.

Though coach Randy Edsall said 24 NFL teams were represented yesterday, he told his players not to be overwhelmed.

“All they’ve got to do is impress one person today,” Edsall said. ”You do that, then you’re going to get your opportunity to further your career.”

McDougle left a positive mark with at least one team. After speaking to reporters, a Terps official pulled him aside for another interview.

Nearly seven months after McDougle’s college career came to a sudden end on a chilly night in East Hartford, Conn., he walked away from Byrd Stadium, headed to Gossett Team House where a New York Giants scout was waiting.

“Once my injury happened, it was just tunnel vision from there,” McDougle said. “I knew what I wanted to do. I had to get back. There was still hope for me to play.”

[ READ MORE: Football: Pro Day ]