Riders searching for next Canadian star at CFL combine

In 2007, Corey Mace was a CFL prospect trying to earn a job.

Now, as the new head coach of the Saskatchewan Roughriders, the Port Moody, B.C. product is looking to give some Canadian talent their chance to show what they can do.

“To be on the flip side of this, it’s a cool aspect, just having a little bit of an understanding what these participants are going through physically and mentally preparing for this,” Mace said Tuesday.

After participating in the 2007 combine, Mace was taken in the second round (11th overall) of the 2007 CFL draft by the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, but he instead signed with the NFL’s Buffalo Bills. He spent three seasons in Buffalo before coming to the CFL in 2009 as a member of the Calgary Stampeders.

Mace and Riders general manager Jeremy O’Day are in Winnipeg for the CFL combine this week, when draft-eligible players try to show their worth to teams in the hope of being picked. The combine runs until Sunday.

“I’ve been to a bunch of these but (I’m) just wearing a different lens so to speak and just seeing the full aspect of all the participants here,” said Mace, who is at his first CFL combine as a head coach.

“Having great Canadians on your roster definitely makes you a better team. (I’m interested in) having a broader scope seeing it here as opposed to the years prior.

“With the preparation of looking at a lot of these guys coming into it, we’ve already started that process of looking outside of the defence and I’m intrigued to put a different lens on, no doubt.”

The first steps Mace and O’Day will take is interviewing the players to try to determine if they fit into their club’s culture.

“(You’re) getting to know these guys a little bit on a deeper level outside of what you see on film and sometimes you can figure if part of their mental makeup is why they play the way they do,” Mace said.

“(We’re) just kind of getting behind the helmet and digging a little bit deeper personally with some of these guys.”

O’Day said the team’s approach hasn’t changed despite having a new coaching staff in place.

“Anytime you have different people in the room, there are different questions, but we still have a core group of questions we will ask the players that are kind of mandatory that we want to get done in the short period of time we have with them,” O’Day said.

“We’re looking forward to going through the interview process.”

The combine will feature 72 national players and 12 global players who will perform a variety of drills, including the 40-yard dash and vertical jump.

That number includes prospects like University of Regina Rams defensive back Jackson Sombach, who participated at the invitational combine before getting an invite to the national event.

Mace will be watching everyone closely.

“Not to say you have a ton of empathy whether it goes good or bad, but you understand the situation so it’s really neat to see it from both sides,” he said.

O’Day said the Canadian talent has improved over the past couple of decades.

“I think that all levels of U Sports has improved. From the strength programs to the coaching to the opportunities, the Canadian players are getting more,” O’Day said. “Back 20 years ago, there was very few guys who would get opportunities to play in the NCAA and now there’s a lot more guys being recruited to go down south.

“You can see it in the NFL draft – there’s more guys that are being drafted and signed as free agents in the NFL. There has always been a good group of talent and it has just improved over the last couple of decades.”

The CFL draft takes place on April 30.