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Once again, it’s the time of year to dive into the numbers and see who will make a splash at the CFL Combine presented by New Era.
After a couple years of virtual combines and players coming at the process from a condensed or reduced season of playing and training, this really signifies the first CFL Combine where players have experienced a full year of relative normalcy to prepare and perform to the best of their abilities.
CFL COMBINE presented by New Era
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Here we are looking strictly at the testing phase of Combine week, which will take place on Thursday. While the numbers aren’t everything, they do hold value in proving intangibles such as work ethic and consistency. Rarely, if ever, does a below average athlete get drafted. That means players in Edmonton this week will need to prove they belong, with goals of setting a new standard for what combine testing excellence looks like, or even better, setting a personal best they can be proud of regardless of context within the big picture of all available draftees.
With that in mind, here are some of the names I expect to compete near the top of the charts for each of the combine’s traditional measurement tests.
BENCH PRESS
Keep an eye on offensive lineman Phillip Grohovac during the bench press on Thursday (Photo: Brandon VandeCaveye/Western Mustangs)
A test of more than just brute strength and upper body explosion, the bench press also tells scouts who has dedicated themselves in the weight room over the course of a four, five, or even six-year university careers thanks to the pandemic. Why? Simply put, the human body will not allow you to show up and post a great bench number without putting in the work consistently.
Which player matches this criteria? Western Mustangs offensive lineman Phillip Grohovac. He came third in the East-West Bowl bench press last year, and continues to be, by all accounts, one of the most focused and pro-ready big men in this draft. All eyes will be on Grohovac when he gets under the bar in Edmonton, while my eyes might be on fellow Western alum and CFL on TSN teammate Duane Forde as he smiles maniacally watching the Mustangs blocker attack the bench.
VERTICAL JUMP
A pair of defensive backs have my attention in the vertical jump. Bishop’s Jake Kelly topped the charts at East-West last spring with a 39” leap but Alberta’s Jake Taylor was just one inch behind, while being longer and carrying some extra weight. Game on in the defensive back testing session between these two while a host of receivers might leap to the top of the charts with a year’s worth of dedicated training.
BROAD JUMP
The broad jump typically favours two body types. One is the mega explosive linebacker or defensive end with so much muscle on their lower half that explosion horizontally is a natural part of their athletic skillset. The other is the lean, long receivers and defensive backs who can float on this test much the same way they do when playing the ball in the air.
The vert and the broad usually correlate pretty good as well, so you guessed it, my pick for this one is again Alberta’s Jake Taylor with a dark horse possibility being Waterloo receiver James Basalyga.
10-YARD
The 10-yard is a funny measurement. It means more to the big men of future CFL trenches due to their 40-yard being largely irrelevant, unless they plan to play on special teams or show off some freaky long speed.
As for who could catch an eye out of the starting gates this Thursday in Edmonton, I’m torn between undersized players with great quickness and receivers with quick twitch change of pace.
What beats it all this year though is a long defensive back with great quickness and light feet. Get used to hearing about Guelph Gryphons defensive back Harrison Bagayogo plenty over the next seven days.
40-YARD
Will Clark Barnes win the 40-yard dash this year? (Photo: Guelph Athletics)
While his Guelph teammate might win the first ten yards, I believe Bagayogo’s sparing partner in U SPORTS practice and combine training is ready to set the show on fire Thursday.
Gryphons receiver Clark Barnes has speed for days and the type of long speed you look for in a plug and play return man as he regularly displayed at Guelph, running away from tacklers in the final stages of long returns.
SHUTTLE
The short shuttle is all about being able to stick your foot in the ground fighting gravity and get back the other direction quickly as possible. When discussing quick cuts, low to the ground body composition, and contact balance, I usually lean for the short, stout backs but this year I think the long steps of Windsor defensive back Breton MacDougall could win the ultra competitive quickness drill in a talented group of ballhawks.
3-CONE
Similar to the shuttle, but with the added twist of non-linear movement, the 3-cone test is ideally suited to defensive backs who are used to following non-traditional paths of movement and can flip their hips smoothly to change direction and accelerate.
Once again, Jake Taylor is my pick here. He might win the vert, broad, shuttle and 3-cone against a really athletic group. That would be a performance that would push teams back to his game film to see if the Beaumont, Alberta native is worthy of a first or early second round pick.