2024 NFL Scouting Combine will be family affair

More than 300 prospects are scheduled to appear at the 2024 NFL Scouting Combine, but it will have a familial feel.

There are slated to be a dozen notable sons of NFL fathers attending the combine, according to NFL Research, along with an assortment of other prospects with NFL relatives.

Among the most prominent are Ohio State's Marvin Harrison Jr., son of Hall of Famer Marvin Harrison; Southern Miss' Frank Gore Jr., son of Frank Gore -- the NFL's No. 3 all-time rusher; USC wide receiver Brenden Rice, the son of Hall of Fame legend Jerry Rice; and Michigan defensive lineman Kris Jenkins, the son of multi-time All-Pro defensive tackle Kris Jenkins.

*Denotes making at least one Pro Bowl

A combine rife with familiar surnames could lead to a memorable 2024 NFL Draft.  

The Common Draft-era high for most players selected in a single draft whose fathers played in the NFL is 11, which was set in 2020. Of the notable sons attending the combine, eight of them have fathers who were Pro Bowlers. The record for most players taken in a single draft whose dads made at least one Pro Bowl is four, which was set in 2011.

The like-father-like-son dynamics aren't the only family ties at the combine.

Rice wide receiver Luke McCaffrey is not only the son of former NFL wideout Ed McCaffrey, but, of course, the brother of current San Francisco 49ers superstar running back Christian McCaffrey. Clemson linebacker Jeremiah Trotter Jr.'s father was a Pro Bowl linebacker, but his cousin Terrance Ganaway was also an NFL player.

Live drills at the combine, which air on NFL Network, will begin Thursday with defensive linemen and linebackers. On Friday, defensive backs and tight ends are in action, followed by quarterbacks, wide receivers and running backs