Hard work ahead for Ekakitie, Bombers’ rookies
WINNIPEG — Faith Ekakitie is as big as advertised. And he has the kind of brute-force strength to push people back into the pocket.
But the Winnipeg Blue Bombers defensive tackle – the first-overall selection in the 2017 Canadian Football League Draft – also admittedly has a way to go before he is comfortable with his new team in his new city.
Asked how he felt after his first practice as a Bomber, Ekakitie grinned at a swarm of reporters and grinned.
“Tired. Real tired,” began the 24-year old. “Needless to say, I’ve got a lot of work to do. Right now things are still kind of spinning, just because it’s a new defence and we play fast. And to play fast I need to pick up things real quick, so it’s going to take some time.”
The Bombers will give him plenty of time to work his way not only through his first rookie and main training camps, but to make the adjustment to playing the three-down game again. Ekakitie moved to Lake Forest Academy in Illinois after one year of high school in Ontario and then played his college ball at the University of Iowa.
And no matter how much a guy prepares for it, stepping back on the longer, wider Canadian field can make for a sudden adjustment.
“I didn’t know what to expect and so honestly, I just came in with an open mind and just kinda roll with whatever they throw my way,” said Ekakitie.
Bombers first overall pick Faith Ekakitie stretches ahead of the Bombers’ first practice of camp (BlueBombers.com)
“At the end of the day, football is football. You line up, you put your hand in the dirt, and you play. The only thing that’s really different is the terminology. So you know a play as one thing for the past 4 ½ years… you get so used to those terms and playing that certain technique. You come here and they’re saying, ‘We’re going to call this, this. And you’re going to play this, this way.’
“So what has become second nature, you have to break yourself of those old habits. Whatever they’re telling me, I’m trying to relate it back to something I’ve already learned so that I can understand it conceptually and go from there.”
Ekakitie was primarily a run-stopping specialist during his years with the Hawkeyes. One of his biggest adjustments with the Bombers at the CFL level will be to continue to clog holes at the line of scrimmage, but also still get after the quarterback.
That much was clear Wednesday afternoon when he was asked about what things he had to work on to cater himself to the CFL game.
“Pass rush, pass rush, pass rush,” Ekakitie said with a chuckle. “That, and getting in better shape. I’m in OK shape, but I don’t think I’m anywhere where I need to be right now… I don’t think anyone is where they need to be right now; no one is in game shape right now. That’s (going to come) with coming out here every day and working hard on every rep to work myself into shape.”
RELATED
» Bombers sign 34th overall pick
» Ever-evolving secondary takes on new look
» O’Leary: Spooner’s path hard but rewarding
Ekakitie is expected to share snaps with veteran Jake Thomas at the Canadian defensive tackle position, but the club also has two other homegrown prospects in 2016 draft pick Rupert Butcher, who attended camp last year before returning to Western and being named a U Sports All-Canadian, and 2017 selection Ian Marouf.
Ekakitie said on draft night he didn’t feel any extra pressure in being the first-overall pick in 2017. That pressure, he insisted, all comes from within as he tries to become a dominant pro.
“It’s an honour to be drafted first overall, but at the end of the day it’s just a label,” Ekakitie said. “So if you don’t make anything of it, two-three years from now that might mean absolutely nothing. But right now I’m just focused on trying to be the best player I can be and try to work hard for my teammates.”
