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CFL Draft: The top 20 prospects

Senior Reporter

A numbers game is about to happen in the CFL.

Approximately 550 players are eligible to be selected in Sunday’s draft, but only 71 players will be taken in the eight-round lottery. (The 72nd pick was forfeited by the Saskatchewan Roughriders when they chose Kevin Francis in the 2016 supplemental draft.)

Barring a trade, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers will make the first pick Sunday. They’re to be followed in the first round by (in order) the Roughriders, B.C. Lions, Hamilton Tiger-Cats, Edmonton Eskimos, Bombers, Lions, Calgary Stampeders and Ottawa Redblacks.

The order for all eight rounds of the draft can be found here

Of the 71 players to be selected, many will have appeared in the top-20 rankings compiled by the CFL’s Scouting Bureau. That group issues three sets of rankings (in September, December and April) in advance of each year’s draft.

Being in the top 20 doesn’t guarantee anything, of course. Players fall out of it when they’re selected in the NFL draft or sign as free agents in that league, while CFL teams regularly go deeper into the list of prospects to find high draft picks.

Here’s the Scouting Bureau’s final pre-draft top 20, with some information about each prospect:

 

  1. Justin Senior, OL, Mississippi State: 6-foot-5, 331 pounds … Hails from Montreal … Held the No. 1 spot in all three rankings through the season … Right tackle missed just one game over three NCAA seasons … Selected by the Seattle Seahawks in the sixth round (210th overall) of the NFL draft, which will drop him down CFL draft boards.
  2. Eli Ankou, DL, UCLA: 6-foot-3, 325 pounds … Product of Ottawa … Went from fifth to third to second in the rankings as the season progressed … Had 87 tackles, four tackles for losses and 1.5 sacks in his Bruins career … Signed as a free agent with the Houston Texans right after the NFL draft.
  3. Geoff Gray, OL, Manitoba: 6-foot-6, 310 pounds … Hometown is Winnipeg … Climbed the rankings all season, going from 11th to fifth to third … Impressive pro day performance at the U of M included riding a unicycle … Signed as a free agent with the Green Bay Packers after the NFL draft.
  4. Danny Vandervoort, WR, McMaster: 6-foot-2, 204 pounds … Product of Barrie, Ont. … Former U Sports rookie of the year moved from third to seventh to fourth in the rankings … Three-time All-Canadian had 148 receptions for 2,572 yards and 29 TDs in 32 career regular-season games with the Marauders.
  5. Faith Ekakitie, DL, Iowa: 6-foot-3, 300 pounds … Hails from Brampton, Ont. … Jumped from 14thto 11th to fifth in the rankings … Recorded 54 tackles, 4.5 tackles for losses and one sack in 23 collegiate contests with the Hawkeyes … Is expected by some to go No. 1, since three linemen ahead of him are on the NFL’s radar.
  6. Christophe Mulumba, LB, Maine: 6-foot-1, 245 pounds … Hometown is Laval, Que. … Started the season ranked sixth, fell to eighth and then returned to No. 6 … Had 347 tackles, 19 tackles for losses and four interceptions in four-year NCAA career … Signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent.
  7. Antony Auclair, TE, Laval: 6-foot-6, 254 pounds … Hails from Notre-Dame-des-Pins, Que. … Jumped around the rankings, going from 10th to second to seventh … Had 17 receptions for 229 yards and two touchdowns for the Rouge et Or last season … Signed a free-agent contract with Tampa Bay after the NFL draft.
  8. Mason Woods, OL, Idaho: 6-foot-9, 320 pounds … Product of Port Coquitlam, B.C. … Was a climber in the rankings all season. Started at 15 before moving to 10 and then eight … Played 37 collegiate games with the Vandals, including 25 straight at guard over the past two seasons.
  9. Nathanial Behar, WR, Carleton: 6-foot-0, 195 pounds …  Hometown is London, Ont. … Went from eighth to 12th to ninth in the rankings … Three-time OUA first-team all-star caught 178 passes for 2,577 yards and 21 touchdowns in 30 regular-season games with the Ravens.
  10. Dariusz Bladek, OL, Bethune-Cookman: 6-foot-4, 329 pounds … Product of Kissimmee, Fla., but has national status because his mother was born in Canada … Wasn’t ranked in first Scouting Bureau rankings. Was 15th in second rankings and 10th in final set … Declared for the 2016 NFL draft, but wasn’t selected or signed as a free agent.
  11. Junior Luke, DL, Montreal: 6-foot-3, 288 pounds … Product of Montreal … Went from 13th to ninth to 11th in the rankings as the season progressed … Had 28 solo tackles, 18 assists and 11 sacks in 32 career regular-season games with the Carabins … Twice named an RSEQ all-star … Has been invited to attend mini-camp by the NFL’s New York Giants.
  12. Kwaku Boateng, DL, Laurier: 6-foot-2, 250 pounds … Hails from Milton, Ont. … Fell from second to sixth to 12th in the rankings … Edge rusher recorded 67 solo tackles, 26 assists and 20.5 sacks over past four OUA seasons with the Golden Hawks … Is to attend mini-camp with the NFL’s Chicago Bears.
  13. Qadr Spooner, OL, McGill: 6-foot-4, 314 pounds … Hometown is Brossard, Que. … Was ninth in the first rankings before falling to 13th in the second — the spot he stayed in through the last set … Played both guard and both tackle spots over his career with the Redmen.
  14. Robert Woodson, DB, Calgary: 5-foot-11, 197 pounds … Resident of Calgary … Went from 12thto 17th to 14th in the rankings through the season … Father (Tony) played in the CFL and older brother (Anthony) is a running back with the Calgary Stampeders … Had 45 solo tackles, 14 assists and eight picks over past four seasons with the Dinos … Is slated to attend Giants mini-camp.
  15. Kay Okafor, DL, St. Francis Xavier: 6-foot-3, 270 pounds … Product of Enugu, Nigeria, but is considered a national … Raw talent was ranked 17th and 19th in the previous two sets of rankings … Had 29 solo tackles, 24 assists and 6.5 sacks in 27 regular-season games with the X-Men.
  16. Braden Schram, OL, Calgary: 6-foot-5, 290 pounds … Hails from Manning, Alta. … Didn’t appear in either of the first two sets of rankings before landing at No. 16 … Started 31 straight regular-season games at right tackle for the Dinos … Two-time Canada West all-star was impressive in one-on-ones at the national combine.
  17. Johnny Augustine, RB, Guelph: 5-foot-10, 200 pounds … Product of Welland, Ont. … Wasn’t in either of the first two sets of rankings … Route-running, hands and blocking ability at national combine impressed many onlookers … Rushed 361 times for 2,052 yards and 19 TDs and caught 28 passes for 339 yards and two TDs for the Gryphons.
  18. Fabion Foote, DL, McMaster: 6-foot-2, 285 pounds … Hometown is North York, Ont. … Jumped into the final top 20 after not being ranked in either of the first two reports … Registered 34 solo tackles, 18 assists and 6.5 sacks over four-year career with the Marauders.
  19. Dondre Wright, DB, Henderson State: 5-foot-11, 210 pounds … Hails from Ajax, Ont. … Didn’t crack the top 20 until the final rankings … Had 74 solo tackles, 39 assists, 4.5 tackles for losses, eight pass breakups and two fumble recoveries in 24 NCAA games with the Reddies.
  20. Connor McGough, DL, Calgary: 6-foot-2, 251 pounds … Product of Medicine Hat … Wasn’t ranked in either of the first two releases … Was a handful in one-on-ones at the national combine … Converted running back had 51 solo tackles, 16 assists and nine sacks in 22 regular-season games with the Dinos … Is to attend a Giants mini-camp.

 

Players like Laval offensive lineman Jean-Simon Roy, Simon Fraser linebacker Jordan Herdman and Regina receiver Mitchell Picton were in and out of the rankings during the season but are expected to be early selections Sunday.

UCLA linebacker Cameron Judge, who wasn’t ruled eligible for the draft until late April, also could be a high pick. He reportedly is attending Houston’s mini-camp.