There will be a handful of legitimate 2015 draft eligible Canadian Football League prospects suiting up at Percival Molson Stadium on Saturday. Various scouts from across the CFL are interested to see how some of the best athletes in Canadian university football perform in a national championship.
"Now it’s nut-cutting time because if you win you’re winning the whole thing," one CFL player evaluator said. "Part of the criteria is clutch. Is a guy a clutch performer? You take note if a guy makes a big play in these games. And you also take note if a guy is a winner in these games."
Another CFL personnel man added:
"Overall, the film from this game for all prospects on both McMaster and Montreal will be evaluated heavily over the next few months by pro scouts. So, the big time players will show up and the ones who aren’t pro-ready will fade."
Montreal and McMaster each have players with intriguing potential at the next level.
Here are the top possible future pros to watch in the historic 50th Vanier Cup:
Byron Archambault, LB, 6-foot, 240 lbs., Montreal
Scouts take: "Big, physical MLB, a true box linebacker. He’s a playmaker, not the fastest or quickest but has instincts and nose for the ball — a tough, good leader."
"You want to see him continue to make big plays at big times for his team at crucial stages."
"There is something about that kid that I’m not wowed about. I don’t know what it is — I know he’s a good football player. Is he fast enough? I think he is."
"He’s got the weirdest body in the world — upper body he looks like a body builder and down below he looks like a fat guy. It’s very, very weird."
Anthony Coady, DB, 5-foot-10, 190 lbs., Montreal
Scouts take: "Coady made that big play in the Uteck Bowl on the safety blitz to cause the fumble. When I look at him it looks like he’s got pretty good feet, can plant and drive and has good hands. And it looks like he has pretty decent range."
"I don’t know about how physical he is. I’ve seen him tackle, but I haven’t seen him come up and make a big hit."
"He flies around, but is smaller and I thought he would play bigger and more physical. He’s disappeared at times during stretches of games, decent special teams player, but you want to see him play big and be a consistent physical force -intimidate people coming over the middle."
Philip Enchill, WR, 6-foot, 200 lbs., Montreal
Scouts take: "A big kid with a good body type. He’s pretty smooth in his routes and catches the ball well. I’m not sure about his burst. He runs okay."
"Enchill is a big possession receiver. He has a good catch radius, good hands and runs decent routes. He’s not the fastest guy, but knows how to work a defensive back in man-to-man coverage and find holes in zone."
"You want to see him use his size to physically dominate defensive backs consistently and go up and get the football."
Mikhail Davidson, WR, 5-foot-8, 175 lbs., Montreal
Scouts take: "He has a burst, but he’s so small. Somebody will probably take a chance on him."
"He’s made plays, but when he gets to our level and he’s up against defensive backs that can run faster than him, I don’t know what’s going to happen. He’s so small."
"Mikhail is fast and plays bigger and stronger than he is. There hasn’t been a lot of small Canadian receivers make it in the CFL, but you could maybe compare him with a Michael Palmer, Brett Ralph or Andre Talbot. He’s faster and stronger than you think and he’s made a ton of plays. He’s really got the production to back it up. He’s impressed me — a smart kid that gets the game."
Jean-Samuel Blanc, DL, 6-foot-1, 245 lbs., Montreal
Scouts take: "He’s got some jump. There is something there. He will definitely get a look."
"He’s an impact special teams player. Blanc is a pretty long kid that runs well. He is a bit of a tweener, but I think there are things that he could do for you defensively along with all the special teams stuff."
Nick Shortill, LB, 6-foot-2, 223 lbs., McMaster
Scouts take: "He flies around and makes plays. He’s up there, I want to say maybe a second round guy — we’ll see how it goes."
"It looks like the weight [20 pounds] that he’s put on has made him better. When a guy puts weight on like that you’re kind of worried about how it’s going to affect his feet, mobility and ability to change direction. He’s turning himself into a pro."
"Shortill is a very active player: good blitzer, nose for the football, instinctive, aggressive and tough. You want to see him play lower with consistent knee bend, he plays straight up too often."
"He’s the best player on McMaster’s defence and it’s not close. You want to see him continue to do what he’s done all year and make plays for them, because if he disappears, their defence is in for a long afternoon Saturday."
Sean Smith, OL, 6-foot-7, 310 lbs., McMaster
Scouts take: "He has a big frame and is just an ok, not great athlete. You want him to be nastier and show a mean streak — play tough, that part of his game is missing on tape. Smith has upside because of his size."
"You want to see him handle Jean-Samuel Blanc and the Montreal pass rush. That is a big test and will show a lot about what kind of player he is."
"He has pretty good technique, tall, long — just kind of what you want."