Andrew Mahon/CFL.ca
TORONTO — The storybook scenario for Jackson Sombach would be to have travelled across the country to earn himself a ticket to a pro career, then to never have to leave home again.
Regina-born and football-bred, Sombach has spent the last four years with the Regina Rams and was a Canada West All-Star in 2022. After a 32-tackle 2023 season that saw him pull in an interception and three pass breakups, Sombach made his way to the CFL’s Invitational Combine in March at the University of Waterloo. He won over talent evaluators with a 36-inch vertical leap, a 4.58-second 40-yard dash and a 6.97-second 3-cone drill, taking top spot in all three categories.
Showing that same athleticism at the CFL Combine presented by New Era in Winnipeg last month, Sombach admitted that playing at home as a pro would be special, but he’s simply focusing on the playing as a pro part for now.
“I’d just be grateful for whoever gave me a chance, gave me a camp invite, drafted me,” he said during the combine in Winnipeg.
“Obviously playing for the Riders would be cool. You know people in the stands, I’d get to play with my buddy Ford-o (Jaxon Ford). But anywhere that would give me an opportunity I would be super grateful.”
Get to know Sombach, who comes from a football-crazed home, ahead of the CFL Draft on April 30 (TSN/RDS).
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The numbers
Height: five-foot-eight
Weight: 195 pounds
Bench: 13 reps
40-yard dash: 4.61 seconds
Vertical: 35.5 inches
Broad jump: 10-feet, 2 1/8 inches
3 cone: 7.02 seconds
Shuttle: 4.28 seconds
The competition started at home
Sombach comes by his competitiveness naturally. One of five boys in his family — with three of his brothers playing on the Regina Rams with him — the Sombach house has in a sense been a lifelong training camp that’s helped get Jackson to this moment.
“Everything’s honestly competition my house, since we’ve been five years old,” he said. “I could play football in the basement or in the front yard and it’s always like, who can get the most yards, the most tackles? Everything we do is just kind of comparing. We’re all pretty close in age and we’re all the same stature and stuff like that. You don’t want to be last, especially being the big brother. You don’t want to get beat by your little brother. So it’s always a big competition in my house.”
Asked who would win the a brother vs. brother (vs. brother vs. brother vs. brother) combine, Jackson didn’t hesitate.
“Me,” he said, laughing.
Friends that have been there, done that
Sombach also has a pair of former Rams teammates with a year of CFL experience that were able to help him prepare for the combine and draft process. Jaxon Ford, who is now a defensive back with the Saskatchewan Roughriders, and Anthony Bennett, a defensive lineman with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, went through the combine and draft in 2023. Both have offered whatever help they can.
“I think it just helps with being comfortable,” Sombach said. “They’ve been through the whole process and they give me tips. I have a question I’ll ask them and they just tell me what I want to hear and that kind of helped prepare me for what’s going to happen with the questions I might get, how the tests go, kind of how to approach the whole thing.
“Obviously they did very well at the combine (in 2023) so I made sure I didn’t go in blind and I think it helped a lot especially with Jaxon playing the same position he gives me tips, I’ll send him videos he’ll give me feedback. He’s done a really good job preparing me and helping me with my questions and just making me feel confident in this whole thing.”
Draft me and you get…
Sombach kept his attributes to the point, but he makes a strong case for himself as a pro.
“(I’m a) super hardworking dude. I honestly love the game of football more than anything, I come and work my butt off,” he said.
“I bring some physicality, quickness and I come from a football family. My dad was a coach, so I bring a high level football IQ to the team and I just bring it every day.”
