– Excitement at the 2009 CFL Evaluation Camp picked up on Sunday as officials from all eight teams congregated at the University of Toronto’s Varsity Centre to watch the 50 league hopefuls run the 40-yard dash, the shuttle and individual drills.
– Bishop’s running back Jamall Lee was the talk of the turf on Sunday after running a 4.39 in the 40-yard dash, the first sub-4.4 time in E-Camp history. The previous best was 4.41 seconds set in Jean-Fredrick Tremblay in 2004. Lee’s time was significantly faster than Cedric Peerman’s 4.45 mark as the fastest running back at last month’s NFL combine. Along with his record-setting run, the 6-1, 215-pounder left also registered the weekend’s top vertical jump with a 44” leap on Saturday.
– Lee put his impressive speed to work during one-on-ones with the linebackers, as he routinely left his defenders behind when catching the ball and turning upfield. While Lee’s E-Camp performance will undoubtedly leave CFL fans salivating to see him this summer, they may have to wait, as the NFL may come calling after his extraordinary showing.
– The record book continued to be rewritten after Lee’s run. Jim Allin, a defensive back from Queen’s, was timed at 3.97 in the short shuttle, eclipsing Montreal Alouette Mathieu Proulx’s old mark of 4.07.
– Several CFL officials were pleased with the talent level of the defensive linemen as a group. Laval’s Etienne Legare looks to be the cream of the crop but Queen’s linemates Osie Ukwuoma and Dee Sterling also impressed onlookers. Teams in need of non-import defensive lineman will be happy with the wealth of talent that this year’s group has to offer.
– While there are a handful of excellent athletes among the group, the consensus among CFL officials is that this year’s crop of offensive linemen isn’t particularly deep.
– During blocking drills that put the running back against the linebackers, Wayne State’s Tristan Black embarrassed a pair of potential blockers with an effective spin move. Black was a popular guy on Sunday, as he was seen chatting with officials from almost every CFL club.
– Approximately 100 spectators watched Sunday’s event. Those in attendance included family members, agents, friends, former teammates of prospects as well as a few interested fans.
– Former Ticat and Toronto resident Nautyn McKay-Loescher was spotted at the Varsity Centre on Sunday, taking in the action from the sidelines.
– It will be interesting to see if any trades take place in the near future. With the CFL congress taking place in Hamilton on Monday to Thursday, general managers and head coaches have spent the better part of the last week in close quarters. You’d have to expect that at least a couple of trade proposals were tossed around.
– Since there were no Canadian quarterbacks invited to Toronto this year, Argonauts quarterbacks Kerry Joseph, Cody Pickett and Reggie McNeal took turns throwing during receiver drills.
– A crew from Ticats TV was on hand and interviewed 20 prospects. Keep checking Ticats.ca for player profiles as the draft approaches.
Click here to check out CFL.ca’s full list of results from Sunday (40-yard dash and Shuttle).
Click here to check out CFL.ca’s full list of results from Saturday (Measurements, Bench press, Vertical and Broad jump).
