The CFL Draft happened last night. There was a lot of hype going into it this year, and many people (including myself) did their own mock drafts. People pretty much knew, or thought they knew, where each eligible player was going to go. This, however, was not the case. Here are the top 10 draft surprises from last night.
10: WR AJOU AJOU IN ROUND 7?
This surprised me quite a bit. Before the combine, Ajou was projected to go in the third or fourth round. Sure, he didn't have an amazing combine, and we all expected his stock to fall a bit, but not by four entire rounds! He was in all of the photoshoots for the draft, on the front cover! I assumed someone would have picked him up before the Riders eventually did, but I assumed wrong. Still, I'm sure if the Riders develop him right, they can turn him into a CFL star.
9: OL KYLE HERGEL AT 3?
Another surprise from the Riders. Kyle Hergel is an amazing offensive lineman out of Boston College, and he can be a MONSTER in the CFL for years to come. My only question is: why round one? He signed a UFA (Undrafted Free Agent) contract with the New Orleans Saints of the NFL quite recently. I'm sure he would have been around in round 2, because he's a risky pick. If it works out for him in the NFL, he may never see the field north of the border. Jeremy O'Day believes that he can get him up here sooner than later, and honestly, I hope he's right.
8: FB/LS BRADLEY HLADIK AT.... 18th OVERALL?
Vintage Chris Jones here. Bradley Hladik is by no means a bad player. He played fullback at UBC, but the thing is, he never really started at fullback. Rather, he's more of a long snapper. I bet that the Elks can turn him into a great fullback if they pour some time and effort into the young player, but I'm pretty sure Hladik should have been drafted maybe a round lower.
7: LB D.K. BONHOMME AS THE FIRST PICK IN ROUND 2
Another... interesting Chris Jones move. Bonhomme certainly is a good football player, but there were some better players on the board at this position. For example, LB Nick Wiebe, who was selected only 2 picks after Bonhomme. Frankly, to me, it seems that the Elks didn't have much of a plan after selecting Joel Dublanko at #1 overall. They have made some more... interesting moves this offseason recently by releasing Enock Makonzo, who was arguably one of their best players last year. I assume they will try to get Joel Dublanko to replace him.
6: LBs, LBs, LBs
Yet again, another Elks pick. This one isn't any one pick in particular, however. It's three. Edmonton drafted three linebackers in the first three rounds. This may be them attempting to refresh their linebacking core, but I'm not sure why they would target ONLY LBs if they have many positional needs elsewhere. For example, Canadian receiver, where Dhel Duncan-Busby was selected just two picks after.
5: LB MELIQUE STRAKER SLIDES DOWN
Straker was projected to go early first round before the combine by John Hodge. He ended up sliding 3 rounds deeper until he hit the 32nd overall pick, being taken by Saskatchewan. Granted, he didn't have a fantastic pro day, but I don't believe he should have slid THAT much.
4: DB JACKSON SOMBACH IN THE 7th?
Yes, he's not the tallest guy on the field. But watch film of him and you'll realize his size doesn't limit him as much as you may think. Richie Hall, one of the greatest CFL defensive backs of all time (who was also drafted to Calgary), was 2 inches shorter at 5 foot 6 inches and weighed 25 less pounds than him. I may be biased because he coaches my football team currently, but I believe he can be the next Richie Hall for the Stamps.
3: RB MICHAEL HERZOG IN THE 6th ROUND
Another height-based draft fall, Herzog would have been taken way earlier save for his 5'8 frame. He was predicted to go in the first or second round by some mock drafts, and I fully expect him to be a force in the CFL for years to come. Hopefully he develops into a great Canadian RB for the Alouettes. This pick may just end up being a steal.
2: DB KAYLYN St-CYR FALLS TO THE 8th ROUND
He was extremely productive for the Carabins over in Montreal, so I'm not entirely sure why he was taken so late. Perhaps his height was a potential no-go for some teams, but he's 4 inches taller than Jackson Sombach, who was taken a round before him. Still, I bet he will contribute great on specials for his first years and develop into a real CFL player.
1: MARDNER OVER MITAL
I personally expected the RedBlacks to draft Kevin Mital out of Laval (haha nice, Mital, Laval, get it?), but they instead chose Nick Mardner from Auburn. Both are solid athletes and will absolutely get the job done, but I feel as if Mital may just be a little bit of a better player than Mardner. Both men are great players, however, and I wish them luck in their CFL careers.
BONUS
Honestly, I think it would be really awesome to have every single Onyeka on the same team at once. We have 5 now in the league, and seeing them all play together would really be special.
By Bruce Chimirri-Olson
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