Elic Ayomanor, Kurtis Rourke get NFL Draft calls; Damien Alford picked first in CFL Draft
Collegiate flag football nationals kick off Friday
Blue skies, green fields, can’t lose.
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Heading south ✈️
Two Canadians heard their names called during the NFL Draft on Saturday:
Stanford Cardinal wide receiver Elic Ayomanor was the first Canuck off the board when the Tennessee Titans got the Medicine Hat, Alta., native with the 136th overall pick in the fourth round. He’s the first-ever NFL Draft selection from his Alberta hometown. Ayomanor joins first-overall pick and Miami Hurricanes quarterback Cam Ward in Nashville.
(Background video: @Titans/X)
Indiana Hoosiers QB Kurtis Rourke had to wait until the final round of the draft to become the first Canadian-born QB to be drafted by an NFL team since Jesse Palmer in 2001. The Oakville, Ont., product went 227th overall to the San Francisco 49ers — an organization that made its way to the Super Bowl just over a year ago with another seventh-round QB, Brock Purdy.
While no other players from north of the border got picked, two did get signed as undrafted free agents:
LSU Tigers defensive lineman Paris Shand signed with the Buffalo Bills shortly after the draft ended on Saturday night. Toronto’s own played three seasons with the Arizona Wildcats until he transferred to LSU ahead of the 2023 season. Shand’s college career was defined by his versatility, playing every technique along the line.
Montana Grizzlies DL Hayden Harris is joining Shand in western New York, also inking a deal with the Bills on Saturday. The dual-citizen — his mother is from Canada — multiplied his 2023 sack and tackle for loss numbers in 2024, jumping from two to 9.5 and 4.5 to 17, respectively.
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At least eight other Canadians have received NFL rookie mini-camp invites, giving these players another chance before the 2025 season to spark interest:
Connor Shay, Wyoming Cowboys linebacker: New York Jets and Green Bay Packers
Damien Alford, Utah Utes WR: Kansas City Chiefs
Ali Saad, Bowling Green Falcons DL: 49ers
Taylor Elgersma, Laurier Golden Hawks QB: Bills and Packers
Erik Andersen, Western Mustangs offensive lineman: New York Giants
Devin Veresuk, Windsor Lancers LB: Indianapolis Colts
Jeremiah Ojo, Montreal Carabins DL: Giants
Eric Cumberbatch, Ottawa Gee-Gees defensive back: New Orleans Saints
In non-draft news, Rutgers Scarlet Knights safety Jett Elad is eligible for a seventh and final college football season in 2025 following a United States District Court decision in New Jersey last Friday:
Elad received a preliminary injunction on his 24th birthday last week after filing a lawsuit against the NCAA in March.
Elad redshirted with the Ohio Bobcats in 2019, was granted a waiver in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and played four complete seasons from 2021-2024. The NCAA argued that Elad exhausted its five-year eligibility rule: playing four seasons in five years. But his 2022 season was with Garden City Community College (JUCO), which is not part of the NCAA.
Vanderbilt Commodores QB Diego Pavia won a similar injunction in 2024, allowing him to waive his junior college year and play another season. Elad argued he should be able to play in 2025 because of the Pavia case.
U.S. District Court judge Zahid N. Qurashi ruled in Elad’s favour, stating the NCAA must grant Elad an eligibility waiver of any rule that would preclude the safety from playing in the 2025 season “based on his time spent at a junior college.” The court elected to follow the reasoning in Pavia’s case in its decision.
The Mississauga, Ont., native will earn $500,000 U.S. in a name, image and likeness (NIL) deal.
The Canadian spent his last two seasons with the UNLV Rebels after transferring from Garden City, and transferred a third and final time this past winter to play for Greg Schiano’s Rutgers team.
ICYMI: Read last week’s Pressure Package, featuring draft previews
Up north 🍁
Tuesday’s CFL Draft saw a first-overall pick that very few had going No. 1, three gun-slingers getting calls in the same draft for the first time in 24 years and a new commissioner taking centre stage:
Alford was the first pick in this year’s CFL Draft, getting selected by the Calgary Stampeders. His 2024 Utah season had many thinking he’d slip lower, but it appears the Montreal native’s Syracuse Orange career — before transferring for what became his final season — was enough to get him over the hump. Alford’s 6-foot-6 frame made him a vertical threat in the ACC from 2021-2023, and on intermediate passes (10-19 yards), he was a top-10 conference receiver in yards (290), yards after catch (80) and first downs (14) in 2023, per Pro Football Focus.
Rourke, Laurier Golden Hawks QB Taylor Elgersma and Montreal Carabins QB Jonathan Senecal were all taken in the draft, marking the first time since 2001 — Jesse Palmer, Will Grant and Phil Cote — that three passers were selected in the same year, per @CFLStats on X/Twitter.
To begin his first year as CFL commissioner, TSN president Stewart Johnston announced the league’s new draft picks on Tuesday. Johnston was named the league’s new commissioner on April 2, succeeding Randy Ambrosie, who announced in October 2024 that he was stepping down.
The Hamilton Tiger-Cats made Veresuk, a Windsor LB, the second overall pick and the first selection from a U Sports program.
Western led all schools with six picks — one more than the Alberta Golden Bears and Montreal.
The Canadian collegiate flag football national championship tournament kicks off at Leibel Field in Regina, Sask., on Friday and runs through Sunday:
The 2025 women’s tournament will be the fourth edition of the championship.
Montreal won back-to-back titles in 2022 and 2023, and returned to the national championship game for a third straight year in 2024. But the College Montmorency Nomades broke its Quebec foe’s streak and is looking to defend its title this weekend.
The University of Toronto, Laurentian University and Western University will represent Ontario. UofT is coming off a 5v5 provincial championship victory in April.
The University of Regina and University of Saskatchewan are among the home-province squads lacing up cleats in the prairies this weekend.
