Bert Faibish
CFL.ca
In the CFL, the success of a team can often by tied directly to the quality and depth of its Canadian talent.
General Managers work and re-work their lineup’s ratio, desperately trying to find a combination that will bring their team success on the field.
It comes as no surprise then that the CFL’s E-Camp is one of the most important events in the league’s off-season – not only for the coming season but also for years beyond.
For the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, this weekend’s camp will represent an opportunity to reaffirm some opinions that until now have been based solely on film and a chance for others to make a solid first impression.
“We definitely had some players last year that prior to camp you had some reservations about, but when they got to the camp, came out of nowhere and had really good workouts,” said Ticats General Manager Bob O’Billovich.
One of the keys to a good draft and one of the main goals during E-Camp is identifying those later-round players that may have been overlooked by other teams, but that you believe could come in and help your team.
“Like most drafts, everybody already knows who the top guys are,” said O’Billovich.
“Its finding guys in the late rounds that might make your team, that’s where you make your money preparing for the draft,” he said.
It isn’t just a young man’s bench press or 40 time that GM’s and coaches will be investigating in Toronto this weekend, it’s also their character, knowledge of the game and commitment to the CFL.
No other league incurs as much risk when drafting a top player than the CFL. Teams could draft a player in the top five, only to see that player sign with an NFL club before they even report for training camp.
“You really have to do your due diligence when looking at a player, especially with the higher picks,” said Obie.
“Over the years there have been some picks that have really shocked me, picks where I knew that the team would never get a look at the kid,” he added.
Gauging the NFL’s interest in a player is often as important as the rest of the scouting process.
“We keep in touch with certain scouting bureaus so that we can get an idea of where a kid stands in the other league,” admitted Obie.
“If there’s a lot of interest there then we may be a bit more wary of drafting them,” he said.
The strength of this year’s draft seems to be along the offensive and defensive lines, which is just fine if you are the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. After losing players like Alexandre Gauthier, Brian Ramsey and Jermaine Reid to free agency, the Ticats could be looking at a number of linemen this weekend.
“Obviously you don’t want to talk about guys that you are interested in but I would say that the most depth in this draft seems to be along the offensive line,” admitted O’Billovich.
Players from the NCAA like Phillip Blake, Scott Mitchell and Tyler Holmes bay be too risky to take in the first round so it will be up to players like Matt O’Donnell, Pascal Baillargeon and Anthony Barrette to impress during workouts and interviews this weekend in Toronto.
While GM’s and coaches will have already evaluated hours of game tape before they ever set eyes on these players this weekend, the chance to see them in person gives players a unique opportunity to solidify opinions or change minds with a solid workout.
“One of the special things about holding a camp like this is that a player can take it upon themselves to really show teams what they’ve got and in the process raise their draft stock,” said O’Billovich.
