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Features March 25, 2024

Cameron Impressed By Prospects at CFL Combine

 

If you’re not putting a lot of stock into this year’s draft class, Dwayne Cameron says to start thinking otherwise.

“This is a really, really good draft class,” informed Cameron. “There is a lot more talent in it than I think a lot of people initially thought.

“I think there was a consensus that it was going to be a strong year in terms of the offensive line divisional group, but across the board there is a lot of talent.

“It’s going to be a very good draft; it’s going to upgrade rosters for teams across the league.”

The CFL Combine presented by New Era wrapped up in Winnipeg Sunday and Cameron was thoroughly impressed by what he saw from Canada’s top football prospects.

The Red and White’s defensive backs coach and CFL Draft coordinator served as the defensive coordinator at the combine this past weekend, coaching up the players as they work to make an impression on the visiting scouts from across the league.

Cameron was mic’d up during the Sunday practice at the combine, and you can watch the coach lead the defence here.

“It’s a lot of work,” he said. “We still have all the interviews that we do in addition to the practice, so really my day starts very early and ends very late. It’s a bit taxing and exhausting, but it’s certainly well worth it and I feel that we from an organizational standpoint are able to bring some great insight working one-on-one with each of these players.

“It’s something on our work calendar that I look forward to so much. The opportunity in a non-competitive situation to spend time with some of those coaches (across the league), that part of it is good.

“It’s an exciting time, with my role in the personnel department with the Canadian draft, it’s an exciting time to get to see these kids and see them play in person.”

The Guelph, Ont., native has extensive knowledge at the U Sports level having coached at Wilfrid Laurier from 2004-09, and again from 2013-19. He was part of the Golden Hawks’ Ontario conference championship teams in 2004, 2005 and 2016 and the Vanier Cup championship team in 2005.

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From their performances at the testing stage to demonstrating their skills on the practice days, the combine gives coaches and scouts plenty of opportunities to make their required observations about the aspiring CFLers.

“First and foremost, you have the testing aspect of things,” Cameron explained. “You want to see whether or not these skills that you see on film can potentially project against the type of athlete these kids are going to have to compete against in the CFL.

“The second thing is you get to see what their frames and their body types look like up close. You can’t always tell on film, and you certainly can’t trust U Sports rosters in terms of heights and weights, so that part of it is important.

“One of the very biggest things that I don’t think people think about very often is the interview aspect. You get to see how young men communicate and in those 15 to 20 minutes that you spend with them, I think you get a real sense of if they’re truly confident individuals, you get to find out how their character is and see how they respect other people as you go through that process.”

The work doesn’t stop for Cameron who immediately following the combine has traveled south of the border, already making scouting stops in Tennessee and Alabama and is now on his way to Mississippi in anticipation of the CFL Draft in late April and subsequent training camp in May.

Just a little over a month away, the draft is slated for Apr. 30 and will be televised on TSN.