Canadian talent on display as CFL’s 2022 combine gets underway

The Saskatchewan Roughriders feel like they’re in a position where they can just take the best player available when their turn comes in the 2022 CFL draft.

“I think overall we’re in pretty good shape,” general manager Jeremy O’Day said Thursday. “Adding Jamal Campbell recently to our offensive line group, I think that now we’ve got some flexibility as to what we can do with our pick and how we have to look at it.

“If we feel good about the majority of our positions that are Canadian, then we will always err to the side of picking the best player. You don’t want to be in a situation where you are reaching on a player just because you think you’re a little thin at that area. Sometimes you could get yourself in trouble and lose out on really good players.”

Canadian football players get one more chance to prove they’re the best option for CFL teams at the national combine this weekend in Toronto. There will be 53 players participating in a variety of drills to impress CFL clubs.

“This is an exciting time for these guys with the year or two that we’ve had and missing a combine a few years ago,” O’Day said. “It’s just nice to be back and let these kids get back to the normal swing of things.

“These guys missed a full year (on the field due to COVID-19) and a full year in the gym and it will just be nice for them to get back out there and it’s nice for us to be here in person as well.”

The University of Regina Rams have three players at the combine: Receiver Riley Boersma, defensive back Brandon Gandire and linebacker Ryder Varga. The University of Saskatchewan Huskies have four players at the combine: Defensive linemen Nathan Cherry and Riley Pickett, running back Adam Machart and offensive lineman Noah Zerr.

Machart said the path is clear for how to prepare for the athletic drills. The interview process is a different story.

“(It’s) a little more up in the air when it comes to the interviews. There’s no real way to predict what is going to be asked of you (and) what kind of questions are going to come up,” Machart said. “I think it’s more a matter of just staying true to who you are and answering questions honestly.”

Machart said he has spoken to others ahead of his first CFL combine, including Winnipeg Blue Bombers lineman Pat Neufeld.

“There’s a lot of resources out there to have some sort of anticipation of what’s to come,” Machart said. “The main points that we’ve been getting is trust your training. We compete every day, we train hard, we’re used to the pressure and we just have to treat it like a game.

Saskatchewan Roughriders offensive lineman Evan Johnson at the CFL combine in Regina in 2017 when he was with the University of Saskatchewan Huskies. (Arthur Ward/CFL.ca)

“Another good point we’ve been hearing is to just be yourself. Stay true to yourself, be your own biggest advocate but don’t put on a show.”

Head coach Craig Dickenson admitted the Roughriders do take where players played their university football into consideration.

“We’re still going to try to get the best player available, but if it’s a tie, the reality is — it’s the same as when I was coaching college ball — the guys that are from Saskatchewan, it means a little bit more to them (to play for the Riders),” Dickenson said.

“When it means a little bit more, sometimes you get just a little more effort and sometimes you get a little more effort in the offseason and sometimes you get more effort in terms of connecting with the community.

“All things equal, we’re going to always defer to the best athlete and the guy who helps our team the most. But we are certainly aware of players that have local ties, whether it be they are from Saskatchewan or have family in Saskatchewan. And we feel like at the end of the day, maybe it means just a little bit more to them.”

There also has been a new but welcome twist when it comes to Canadian athletes trying to make the jump to the pros.

“In the last 10 to 15 years, I’ve been to a lot of combines and it seems like our players in the CFL and players now are so much better prepared than they have been in the past,” O’Day said.

“That’s nothing against former players or players who have gone through the combine in the past, but they take it very seriously. It’s no secret what they get tested on and what the interview process is going to look like, but they are all just very prepared.”

O’Day also pointed out that not only have U Sports teams stepped up their game when it comes to developing players, but NCAA teams have been taking Canadian football players more seriously when it comes to recruitment.

“I think that’s helped our Canadian players a little bit, going to compete against Division 1 players and then enter in our draft,” O’Day said.

CFL teams also are dealing with Canadian athletes making the jump to the NFL. An example of that was former Riders slotback Brayden Lenius, who signed with the Atlanta Falcons after his second season in the CFL.

“It’s an interesting twist you’ve got to consider in your mind,” O’Day said. “Look at our situation. A couple of our draft picks within the last couple years, we felt they were right there on the verge of being NFL guys and then you get them for a year or two and then they become NFL guys.

“You have to evaluate that in the process as well: Is it worth having a guy for a couple good years and then losing him or do you take a guy that’s going to be a long-term guy in the CFL?”

The combine runs Saturday and Sunday. The CFL draft is set for May 3.