Johany Jutras/CFL.ca
CFL.ca Staff
TORONTO — The Montreal Carabins were the best university football team in the country this CIS season, and at this weekend’s combine they’re also the tightest-knit.
Five Carabins proudly wear the logo on their sleeve this weekend, each prouder of their school’s contribution than setting their own personal bests.
If you see a Carabin stepping up to the plate this weekend, you can bet the other four are somewhere close by watching.
“We have a big family here with the Carabins,” says wide receiver Mikhail Davidson, one of three Montreal alums in Toronto this weekend after being invited from Wednesday’s Montreal Regional Combine.
“Every time we test we have four other guys cheering for us.”
Two were selected outright, while the other three dominated in the Montreal regional to earn their spots. Now, it seems, all five are inseparable.
Byron Archambault was the one to watch this weekend, with a personal best of 45 in the bench press and aiming to break Michael Knill’s all-time record of 47 reps. He put the bar up 41 times, short of what he hoped for but still an outstanding performance all around.
The Montreal linebacker placed second all-time in the bench press and set a record among linebackers, and his teammates standing by watching may have been more thrilled than he was.
Not long later, Archambault rushed out of his CFL.ca interview so he could catch teammate Phillip Enchill take on the bench.
“More,” says Archambault when asked if his teammates’ results matter just as much as his own. “They matter more.”
“They were there at my bench test, I didn’t have to ask for them to be there – it’s a reflex for us,” he adds. “We don’t think about it, it’s just how we are.”
And isn’t that how teammates should be?
The Carabins weren’t the most dominant in the testing results (although Archambault’s bench press is about as dominant as it gets).
Archambault ranked low at his position for the vertical and broad jumps, while none of the other four Montreal-based athletes landed inside the top-five for today’s tests.
What the Carabins showed on Saturday was a love of the game and a dedication to teamwork. It certainly showed in November, when the Carabins raised the Vanier Cup after a thrilling late-game victory over McMaster, defying the odds with a win over Laval along the way.
“I think it’s the last link that was missing for the Carabins to win the championship, and this year we were locked in,” says Anthony Coady, a defensive back invited from the Montreal Regional. “Nobody could break us and we won the championship.”
“I think it speaks for itself.”
“It’s nice that we had two direct invitations, but we knew our place was here – me, Davidson and [defensive lineman Jean-Samuel Blanc],” he continues. “We knew we’d do well in the regional and finally we’re here, so it’s pretty nice.”
“I think it showed the unity that we have. We’re doing things together as a team.”
Davidson and Coady say they’re most excited for Sunday’s football drills and one-on-ones, where they believe they have the most to show.
The 40-yard dash will come first, followed by the shuttle and three-cone tests – then it’s on to what they know best.
“We have a lot to offer but I think we’re not necessarily testers,” says Coady. “We’re more football players, and I think it’s going to show this weekend.”
Davidson holds the same hope heading into the combine’s final day – the last chance to make an impression before the May 12 CFL Draft.
“I hope on football day I will be better than in the regionals, against better players in the conference,” adds Davidson.
Among so many storylines heading into Sunday, keep an eye on the Carabins. With five of them out there, they’ll be hard to miss.
