THE CANADIAN PRESS
TORONTO — Steven Turner gave CFL coaches, GMs and scouts plenty to mull over at the league’s evaluation camp.
The Bishop’s Gaiters receiver posted a blazing time of 4.31 seconds in the 40-yard dash Sunday, shattering the mark of 4.39 seconds set last year by former Gaiters star Jamaal Lee.
“My first goal coming here was to be the 40-yard dash time,” Turner said. “Jamaal is a former teammate of mine and we’re good friends so it means a lot to get that.
“But this is what I came here to do and it worked out pretty well.”
It was the second straight day Turner had raised eyebrows. On Saturday, the five-foot-nine, 185-pound Toronto native posted a vertical leap of 43.5 inches, finishing just a half-inch shy of Lee’s record 44-inch jump last year.
And his time of 4.03 seconds was tops in the shuttle.
Many CFL officials feel the talent pool at receiver for the 2010 Canadian college draft May 2 is very deep, which is good news for the Toronto Argonauts. They own the first pick overall and three of the first 11 selections. Argos head coach Jim Barker said Turner certainly boosted his draft stock this weekend.
“He really helped himself to show the quickness that he has,” Barker said. “He’s a quick and talented athlete.
“That’s a very good receivers group. There’s a lot of guys there that will play in this league.”
Turner had 11 catches for 207 yards and one TD last season but was also Canadian university football’s top punt returner, averaging a stellar 20.4 yards per return. He took two back for touchdowns.
That versatility is very attractive to CFL coaches, who with being able to dress just 42 players per game are always on the lookout for those who can perform multiple tasks. And it’s a skillset that makes Turner a good bet to be a first-round draft pick.
Another player who excelled during the camp was Wilfrid Laurier running back Mike Montoya. After establishing a camp-record 40 reps in the bench press Saturday, all eyes were on the five-foot-10, 236-pound native of Burlington, Ont., on Sunday, and he didn’t disappoint, posting a time of 4.60 seconds in the 40-yard dash.
And that’s pretty good, considering Montoya – who is projected as a late second-round selection May 2 – will likely be a fullback in the CFL but still possess the speed to make big plays when he gets the ball. However, scouts would like to see Montoya improve his blocking ability, something that’s essential for a fullback.
“I think I might’ve turned a couple of heads, they might’ve thought I couldn’t move as fast being a larger running back,” said Montoya. “I’m pretty proud being able to come out here and do as well as I did.”
Amazingly, Montoya said he could’ve done better in the bench press.
“I didn’t live up to my expectations,” he said. “I thought I would’ve been able to get five or six more than I did but you have to be happy with what you did.
“I don’t want to be greedy.”
Queen’s Shomari Williams and Cory Greenwood of Concordia did little to tarnish their reputations as the top two linebackers in the draft.
The six-foot-two, 235-pound Greenwood, of Kingston, Ont., showed his athletic ability by posting the best broad jump (10 feet 4.5 inches), finishing third in the vertical (40 inches) and was tied for fourth in the 40-yard dash (4.50 seconds).
Williams, a six-foot-two, 236-pound Toronto native, had a 40-yard dash time of 4.66 seconds, jumped 37.5 inches in the vertical and had a broad jump of 10 feet two inches.
But not all players dramatically improved their draft stock.
Joe Eppele, a towering six-foot-eight, 309-pound offensive lineman from Washington State, came into the camp with a chance to strengthen his grip on being the favourite to go first overall in this year’s draft. Eppele had a solid opening day – registering 28 reps in the bench press and 36-inch vertical.
But Eppele struggled in the 1-on-1 drills Sunday, so instead of solidifying his status as the clear-cut favourite to go first overall he fell back to the pack of prospects for the Argos to consider.
“It’s one of those things where we’re going to go back and evaluate everything,” Barker said. “You have a better idea as time goes on but we still have another six weeks to go to the draft.
“There’s going to be things that happen between now and then and we’ll see what happens.”
But Barker and other CFL officials were very impressed with the talent level displayed by the prospects over the weekend.
“There’s maybe not the top two or three guys who stand out but I think there’s two full rounds of guys who are going to make teams,” Barker said.
Hamilton Tiger-Cats coach Marcel Bellefeuille and Paul LaPolice of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers agreed.
“I’ve been very impressed with the speed and strength of the players,” Bellefeuille said. “Obviously the strength coaches are doing a great job and players are understanding now what it takes to play in the CFL.
“They’re much more prepared than they were 10 years ago when I first game into the league. All the positions this year are fairly deep .”
Added LaPolice: “I think you’re still going to get good players in the fourth, fifth and sixth rounds. The CIS coaches should be really proud because there’s a lot of talented kids who are well coached. The strength and conditioning out of this crew was tremendous.”
