Click our fan poll to the right and tell us which player chosen in the third round or later of the 2010 CFL Canadian Draft you think will have the biggest impact this season

Mitch Ward
CFL.ca

TORONTO -- With the 2010 CFL Canadian Draft in the books, everyone is now wondering which players will be able to earn themselves a roster spot come training camp.

Everyone expects, or at least hopes, their team’s first and second round selections will pay dividends. Shomari Williams is good, and Joe Eppele is huge.

These players deserve the hype, but they aren’t the only potential stars in the draft.

Being drafted in the late rounds isn’t necessarily an indication of a player’s talent or ability to make the jump to the CFL.  Several factors such as injury, remaining NCAA eligibility or interest from the NFL can all cause a sure-fire first rounder to slip into the back end.

The first rounders get the bulk of the attention heading into camps but players selected later on still have nearly as good of a shot at cracking a team’s roster and making an impact.

Exhibit A: BC Lions defensive end Brent Johnson.

Way back in 2000 Johnson was a highly touted prospect out of Ohio State and was named to the All-Big Ten Team in his senior year. He slipped all the way to the third round and 20th overall due to some interest from the NFL and the lack of a guarantee he would end up in the CFL. Since arriving in BC though, all he has done is terrorize opposing quarterbacks.  He is a two-time Outstanding Canadian and has 76 sacks over the course of a nine-year CFL career.

Johnson is by no means the only late rounder to make an impact in the last decade. 2001 fourth rounder Kevin Eiben was a two-time nominee for Most Outstanding Canadian in 2004 and 2005. Eiben’s former Argo teammate Andre Talbot who is now with the Eskimos was taken in the fifth round of that same year.

Another late round standout is Hamilton’s Dave Stala. Drafted in the sixth round, 50th overall in 2003 by the Montreal Alouettes, Stala has become one of the more dependable receivers in the game. He recorded his first 1,000 yard season in 2005 hauling 83 passes for 1,037 yards and five touchdowns for the Alouettes. Last season, he caught 67 passes for 751 yards and two touchdowns in his first year with the Ticats, as well as two TDs in Hamilton’s loss to BC in the Eastern Semi-Final.

From more recent draft classes look no further than Chris Getzlaf, a fifth rounder in 2007 or third rounder Jason Arakgi in 2008. Getzlaf has emerged as a solid receiver for the Roughriders and had a breakout season in 2009 with 531 yards receiving and six TDs. Jason Arakgi meanwhile led the league in special teams tackles during his rookie season and was the West nominee for Most Outstanding Special Teams Player last year.

So who will this year’s late round sleeper be? There are plenty of solid options from a deep 2010 class. BC and Toronto would seem the most likely to find a late round gem with seven and six picks respectively coming after the second round.

The Lions were ecstatic to get Joash Gesse with their first choice of the third round and actually had the Carabins linebacker ranked ahead of Cory Greenwood on their draft board. In the fourth and fifth rounds the Lions may also have scored with a pair of former St. Francis Xavier products Akeem Foster and Cauchy Muamba. Foster has excellent size at receiver while Cauchy Muamba brings excellent athleticism and a little bit of swagger to the corner position.

Steven Turner, selected in the 4th round, 30th overall by the Argos has eye-popping speed and could end up being a dynamic return man/big play receiver for the Boatmen. Turner was the 14th ranked prospect by the CFL Amateur Scouting Bureau but slipped to the late rounds after an invite to the Chicago Bears mini-camp.

Just before choosing Turner, the Argos grabbed another highly ranked prospect in offensive lineman Joel reinders with the 26th overall selection. Reinders was seen by many as a blue chip prospect with a ton of potential having only played two years of organized football. Like Turner, Reinders could very well have gone in the first round had he not garnered interest from the NFL. The 6’8” Waterloo product is likely to attend the Cleveland Browns main training camp at the very least, and therefore won’t see any CFL action until August at the earliest.

Hamilton, who did not have a first or second round selection, must have been thrilled to see ninth-rated prospect Eddie Steele out of Manitoba still available with their second pick (22nd overall) of the third round.

Winnipeg, like Hamilton did not have a first rounder in 2010 and will hope some of their late round picks can blossom at the pro level. With the 28th and 29th overall selections the Bombers chose LB Chris Smith out of Queen’s and RB Anthony Woodson giving them some much needed Canadian depth at both spots.

The Roughriders after selecting first and eighth overall had to wait until the fifth round before picking again. They elected to keep it local with the 33rd overall selection, taking Saskatchewan O-lineman Paddy Neufeld. Neufeld looks like a build for the future type guy. He will certainly benefit from the experience of a pro training camp, and while he may not stick with the club this year, given an extra year at the CIS level to get stronger could end up being a lineman of the future.

Another interesting selection came in the sixth round when Edmonton selected Corbin Sharun. The Edmonton Wildcats DB wasn’t the most highly touted player at his position heading into the draft but the Eskimos must have seen something they liked in the local product having already signed him to a three-year deal.

So who will be the 2010 CFL Canadian Draft’s best late round selection? We want your thoughts. In our poll to the right, choose which player chosen in the third round or later of the 2010 CFL Canadian Draft will have the biggest impact on his team this season.

Note: only players who could potentially play during the 2010 season are listed. Players with remaining NCAA eligibility returning to school in the fall are not eligible.