Johany Jutras/CFL.ca
TORONTO — Josiah St. John went number one while three Laval offensive linemen were also taken early, but the first round of the 2016 CFL Draft wasn’t without its surprises.
The Riders went with the hulking Oklahoma graduate St. John with the first pick, opting to kick off their first draft under Chris Jones with a key building block on the O-line. The trade talk never dialed down before the draft but the Riders couldn’t find the right offer and they end up with St. John, a potential franchise tackle.
After the Alouettes went with the local product in Philippe Gagnon, one of the CFL Combine’s most dominant players with 40 reps on the depth chart, the Ticats made the draft’s biggest early splash by trading up from fifth to third to select Grand Valley State offensive lineman Branden Revenberg.
The Ticats swapped picks with the Lions, obtaining third overall and a fourth round pick (30th overall) in exchange for their fifth overall pick and a third round pick (23rd overall). Revenberg brings versatility to the Ticats’ O-line after playing every position on the O-line during his college career.
Round 1 Recap
| Pick | Player | Pos | School | Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | St. John, Josiah | OL | Oklahoma | SSK |
| 2 | Gagnon, Phillippe | OL | Laval | MTL |
| 3 | Revenberg, Brandon | OL | Grand Valley State | HAM |
| 4 | Jones, Brian | WR | Acadia | TOR |
| 5 | Vaillancourt, Charles | OL | Laval | BC |
| 6 | Singleton, Alex | LB | Montana State | CGY |
| 7 | Lauzon-Seguin, Jason | OL | Laval | OTT |
| 8 | Smith, Tevaun | WR | Iowa | EDM |
Perhaps the biggest surprise of the draft came in the fourth slot, where the Argos selected Acadia receiver Brian Jones. Jones made the biggest jump in the most recent CFL Scouting Bureau rankings, going from unranked to 18th after a solid combine showing.
After the Lions grabbed Laval’s Charles Vaillancourt, the second of three highly-touted Laval offensive linemen, the Stampeders took the draft’s first defensive player with Alex Singleton — a late add to the CFL Scouting Bureau after obtaining national status.
Laval University made history when the REDBLACKS selected the third offensive lineman of the night, right tackle Jason Lauzon-Seguin, with the seventh overall pick.
The Eskimos took the second receiver of the draft with the eighth pick to close out the round, the second-ranked player on the CFL Scouting Bureau Tevaun Smith.
With three players going in the first round, Laval ties the University of Calgary for the record of most players taken in round one in a single draft with three. Calgary achieved the feat in 2013 with Linden Gaydosh (1, HAM), Mike Edem (3, MTL) and Steven Lumbala (5, MTL).
It also marks the first time in history a school has had multiple players go in the first round of back to back years, bringing Laval’s total to five first round picks between 2015 and 2016. In all, Laval tied Calgary for first place since 2001 with 11 first round picks.
