Justin Dunk
CFL.ca
In the final part of our stock up or stock down game with Duane Forde of TSN, we focus on the receivers, a position which some CFL scouts believe has the most depth when assessing the 2012 draft.
“Yeah [the class is deep], they’re big and fairly strong. Size-wise it’s probably one of the better draft classes [of receivers],” Calgary Stampeders offensive coordinator, Dave Dickenson said. “Certainly there is a nice polished look among them.”
“The Canadian receiver has really taken a big step forward in the last five to ten years. There are a lot of good receivers out there.”
Some of the top pass catching prospects improved their stock at E-Camp, while others dropped. There were also some relatively unknown pass targets that put themselves on the radar.
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| Shamawd Chambers impressed at E-Camp and proved to be “the best receiver prospect,” according to Duane Forde. |
Shamawd Chambers
Receiver
6’ 3” 219 pounds
Wilfrid Laurier
Forde: “Some scouts came into E-Camp with a question of who really is the top receiver. Is it Shamawd Chambers? Is it Ismael Bamba? Is it Simon Charbonneau-Campeau?
“I think that Shamawd Chambers proved that he is the best receiver prospect at this point. In terms of his testing, I think he showed that. And in terms of what he did in the [football] drills and one-on-ones, I think he showed that as well.
“I think he is the top guy. It wouldn’t shock anybody to see Shamawd Chambers gone within the first two or three picks of this draft.”
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Johnny Aprile
Receiver
6’ 2” 208 pounds
Queen’s
Forde: “I certainly don’t think he hurt himself. I think he’s a guy that showed that physically, he is very much a prospect in the Canadian Football League. He’s a guy who made a ton of plays.
“The comparison that I’ve made with him is to Jade Etienne last year. Aprile was a guy who, going into the 2011 CIS season, wasn’t necessarily on the radar. People kind of knew he was there, but he was just another receiver.
“But a guy who over the course of the year, you’re watching the highlights on Saturday night and he just seemed to show up making a big play every week. I think he earned his way in among the top prospects because of that, and is going to get some consideration.
“You look at him and he’s a big strong physical guy that was one of the things that surprised me a little bit. I didn’t expect him to be as impressive physically as he was, but he’s a guy who’s physically mature and a guy who may be able to help you on special teams [right away] because of that.”
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Ismael Bamba
Receiver
6’1” 195 pounds
Sherbrooke
Forde: “I would say Ismael Bamba is primarily a speed guy, and he showed that. His athleticism lived up to its advanced billing. He ran very well – particularly using his speed on his routes against the defensive backs.”
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| There were high expectations for Simon Charbonneau-Campeau coming into E-Camp, but the combine format did not play to his strengths. |
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Simon Charbonneau-Campeau
Receiver
6’4” 195 pounds
Sherbrooke
Forde: “Simon Charbonneau-Campeau is a guy from whom I wanted to see a little more. I’ve watched him over the course of the last couple CIS seasons and have been very impressed.
“I kind of saw him as a guy who wasn’t necessarily going to wow you with his testing, but was probably going to be faster than people thought – which happens a lot of times with taller receivers – I think he definitely did that.
“I think sometimes he had a little bit of trouble getting off the jam, showing that upper body strength is something that he’s going to need to work on, and I think he’d probably say the same.
“I wanted to see his ability to get open and fight for the football a little bit more, in the sense of what we got used to seeing from him in CIS football. I didn’t see that as much from him at E-Camp.
“I know sometimes it can depend on opportunity and what routes happen to get called in limited repetitions. But, I found myself wanting to see more from him because I believe he’s capable of more than what he showed.”
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Bogdan Raic
Receiver
6’ 2” 218 pounds
Ottawa
Forde: “Certainly one guy that stepped up and really helped his stock was Bogdan Raic from the University of Ottawa. You talk about a guy flying under the radar. Coming in he was probably one of those guys that a lot of teams kind of knew about and were intrigued about from being a productive receiver with good size.
“I suspect that he ran better than a lot of people expected him too, and was more impressive in the one-on-ones than people expected him to be.
“Coming in not knowing a ton about him, I think he was a guy who established himself very much as a legitimate prospect. I think Raic is a guy that really helped himself.”
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Jordan Brescacin
Receiver
6’ 4” 195 pounds
Windsor
Forde: “The OUA guys represented very well. Jordan I thought was terrific, particularly in the one-on-ones, even though he didn’t run a blazing 40 time.
“Sometimes you have to remember when a receiver is 6’4”, he doesn’t have to run a 4.40 40 to get to the same football’s that a five-foot-nine guy does just because of his height and reach. He’s going to be able to catch the ball at a higher point, so he doesn’t necessarily have to run as far to get that football.
“He showed in the one-on-ones why he’s been such a productive receiver in university football.”
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