Roughriders’ top pick excited about getting drafted to CFL

Samuel Emilus could be an answer to one of the problems that ailed the Saskatchewan Roughriders in 2021.

The Roughriders selected the Montreal-born wide receiver in the first round (seventh overall) of Tuesday’s CFL draft. One of his strengths is going up and coming down with jump balls over defenders.

“I’m proud of (the ability to do that). I really make myself proud of being able to come back down with the ball. I would say that Saskatchewan got someone they needed to,” the 24-year-old Emilus said Wednesday.

“It was unreal (hearing my name called that early). We had a memory lane of the path I had to go through and accomplish. It was great to finally play pro football and have a dream come true.”

The 6-foot-1, 200-pounder caught 76 passes for 910 yards and 10 touchdowns during his college career.

“He’s got enough speed where I don’t know if I would just isolate him on one position,” Roughriders general manager Jeremy O’Day said when asked about what kind of receiver Emilus is. “He’s fast enough and has good enough ball skills where he attacks the ball. Some of his highlights are pretty impressive where he goes over top of defensive backs and makes plays.”

The Riders had one of the league’s worst passing attacks in 2021, throwing for the second-fewest yards (3,273) and touchdowns (14) in the CFL.

Despite that, O’Day said that wasn’t a factor in selecting Emilus.

“I think it was just a little bit of an off-year (for the offence). We went from one of the best to one of the worst on the deep ball,” O’Day said. “Hopefully we get back to where we were a couple of years ago in making those big plays because they are important to us.”

While Emilus played his college ball in the States — three seasons for the University of Massachusetts Minutemen and one with the Louisiana Tech University Bulldogs — he knows all about the kind of support the Riders get from their fans.

“I was a CFL fan. My favourite team was the Montreal Alouettes and during that time they were a good team with (Anthony) Calvillo and (S.J.) Green. They had a great team,” Emilus said.

“I heard about Riderville when I was watching when I was younger. I always saw the green wave in the stands and that was pretty cool. I heard they are the loudest in the league (and the) best fans in the league. I can’t wait if it happens, my chance to be with the Riders. I can’t wait to see it.”

Since he grew up in Montreal and played football in Canada, he doesn’t think there will be much of an adjustment for him coming back north.

“I was an inside receiver with the waggle as well so I don’t think the adjustment is going to be too hard,” Emilus said.

While the Riders hope to see him at rookie camp and training camp this year, Emilus does have some interest from the NFL. He received a mini-camp invite from the Arizona Cardinals.

“I hope to be part of the roster and be part of the team and fulfil one of my dreams of playing in the NFL,” Emilus said. “CFL is definitely an option for me so I don’t want to close the door on that.”

Riders add centre ahead of training camp

The Riders also added another body to their offensive line group, signing former Kansas State centre Noah Johnson.

Johnson, 24, spent three collegiate seasons with the Wildcats. In his senior season, he allowed only two sacks and his efforts helped Kansas State tie for second in the Big 12 conference with 29 rushing touchdowns.

The 6-foot-1, 293-pounder spent his first two seasons of eligibility at Butler Community College.