Canadians invited to combine

THE CANADIAN PRESS

Toronto's Philip Blake will have another opportunity to impress NFL officials.

The six-foot-three, 320-pound centre with the Baylor Bears was one of three Canadian players invited to the 2012 NFL scouting combine. Blake will be joined Feb. 22-28 in Indianapolis by Regina defensive tackle Akiem Hicks and Boise State defensive end Tyrone Crawford.

Last month, Blake took part in the Senior Bowl, the U.S. college all-star game featuring many of the top blue-chip prospects for the NFL draft. Blake did more than hold his own, improving his draft stock with solid performances during the week of practice before representatives from all 32 NFL teams.

Blake heads to the combine projected to be selected between the third and fourth rounds of the April 26-28 draft in New York. And that's bad news for the Montreal Alouettes, who own his CFL rights after choosing him in last year's draft.

The six-foot-five, 300-pound Hicks spent two seasons at Regina after playing for the Sacramento City College Panthers in 2007 and 2008. Hicks, a California native, was one of three Canadian university players to participate in last month's East-West Shrine game in Florida.

The top lineman in Canada West last season, Hicks also earned first-team all-Canadian and Canada West honours. He had a team-high 35{ tackles and a school-record 6{ sacks last season and is projected as a potential fifth-round NFL draft pick.

The six-foot-four, 285-pound Crawford, a native of Windsor, Ont., led Boise State with 13 1/2 tackles for a loss last year. He also took part in the East-West Shrine and heads to the combine projected as a late-round draft pick.