lingzi
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CALGARY —John Hufnagel has pulled his staff into a huddle ahead of next weeks
CFL Canadian college draft. The Calgary Stampeders head coach will conduct at
least one mock draft with members of his coaching and football operations staff
on Friday. A full week before the draft on May 3, Hufnagel and his staff have
already put together their rankings of the top Canadian football prospects. “We
just spent three days of intense meetings,” said Hufnagel, who also serves as
Calgarys general manager. “We came out today with a full ranking as far as how
we would like to select them.” Hufnagel and his staff will now spend a couple
days “digesting” and thinking about the list to assess if they want to make any
changes. “On Friday, well have a mock draft,” Hufnagel said during a news
conference on Wednesday. “I believe well have several mock drafts. One year we
had one and I was very comfortable. Other years I had two. This year, I might
need five.” The Stamps own nine picks in this years draft, including the fifth
overall selection. “Unfortunately, though we have a lot of picks, a lot of our
extra picks are in the fourth, fifth and sixth rounds,” Hufnagel said. “Its nice
to have the nine draft picks, which is three more than any other team, but my
phones not ringing off the desk because people want my fourth-, fifth-round
picks.” When asked about the importance of the Canadian college draft, Hufnagel
replied, “I think its the backbone of your organization. Out of the 42-man
roster, 20 of them are going to be on the field for you.” Last year, Hufnagel
traded up to select wide receiver Anthony Parker third overall and then took
defensive lineman Junior Turner in the second round (ninth overall). Both Parker
and Turner suited up for the Stamps last season as did defensive linemen Akwasi
Antwi and quarterback Brad Sinopoli, who were both chosen in the fourth round.
“Its always a guessing game, but the draft picks that we have made, a lot of
them have been very productive,” Hufnagel said. “Im very pleased with last years
draft with the players that came in. I did not expect a lot of them to be
playing as much football as they did, but because of injuries and other
situations they were on the field a lot more than I had expected and I thought
they did a great job for us.” Hufnagel added that hes pleased with the overall
talent in this years draft. “Each and every year, one or two positions are a
little bit heavier than others,” he said. “This years no exception. I think
theres a lot of quality defensive linemen involved in this draft. Theres some
excellent offensive linemen.” With this weeks announcement that NFL rosters can
expand from 80 to 90 players for training camp, CFL general managers have to be
wary about picking players that might end up heading south of the border instead
of playing at home. “Im hoping that the players that we do select wont be part
of that migration,” Hufnagel said. “When you draft good players, which I expect
to be doing, itll be a wait and see.” Highly-touted Canadian prospects like
defensive end Tyrone Crawford, offensive lineman Ben Heenan and receiver Shamawd
Chambers could all start their playing careers south of the border. “Theres
other players that are going to get NFL looks,” Hufnagel said. “Youre trying to
do as much investigation as possible so you know what the risk is when youre
picking that player. Do you have the affordability to wait for that player?”
Whether or not he pulls off another trade to move up in the draft, Hufnagel has
a number of options open to him on draft day. “I do believe that we are a
football team with the Canadian depth that we can afford to take a chance,
because the risk versus the reward is so great,” he said. Last year, the Stamps
selected both Parker and running back Matt Walter (fifth round, 34th overall)
from the University of Calgary Dinos. Depending on how things go, the Stamps
have a chance to land another prospect from the local university in offensive
lineman Kirby Fabien, who was ranked 15th in the CFL Scouting Bureaus final
ranking of the top-15 eligible prospects. “Kirby is No. 1 a big man, very
athletic,” said Hufnagel, who noted the Stamps invited him in for a workout a
couple weeks ago. “We saw how athletic he is. Im sure on draft day hell be a
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defender Domenico Criscito was dropped from Prandellis squad after being
questioned at the national teams training headquarters.SURREY, B.C. —Contrary
to public perception, it turns out that Paul McCallum actually struggles once in
a while. The B.C. Lions kicker hopes to put in a better effort against the
Edmonton Eskimos on Friday after a couple of rare misses last weekend. McCallum,
who was almost perfect last season, missed two field goal attempts in a 23-20
loss to Saskatchewan. On the second one, Tristan Jackson returned the ball 129
yards for the decisive touchdown. But McCallum, who booted a record 30
consecutive three-pointers in 2011, is not dwelling on his mistakes as the Lions
(2-1) host the Eskimos (2-1) at B.C. Place Stadium. You can see the game live on
TSN and TSN Mobile TV, with coverage beginning at 9:30pm et/6:30pm pt. Dont
forget to join our Game Night Blog and interact with your fellow fans. “Its
professional sports,” McCallum said Thursday after a practice at the Lions
facility in Surrey, B.C. “Youre not going to be perfect. So youve just gotta put
it behind you and go out in this game here and try and correct the mistakes you
made and work hard. Thats all you can do.” The 40-year-old Surrey, B.C., native
made 50 of 53 field goal attempts last season while helping the Lions roar back
from a 0-5 start to win the Grey Cup. But he has already missed three this
season while making good on nine of 12 attempts. He has spent the past week
reviewing video of his kicks from this season and previous campaigns in a bid to
avoid more miscues. “My timing was a little bit off,” said McCallum, who aims
for a smooth golf-like swing with his kicking motion. He was also approaching
the ball differently and made an adjustment. The Lions are also deploying a new
holder in backup quarterback Mike Reilly, the replacement for Jarious Jackson,
who was released and signed with Toronto as a free agent. Centre Angus Reid has
also become the new snapper on field goals following Dan McCulloughs retirement.
McCallum is still adjusting to the changes. “Its a work in progress,” said
McCallum. “Im not going to lie. Those guys are doing their jobs. But its a
comfort level for me. The more work I get with them, the better.” Reilly said
Reid, also the centre on regular downs, has been able to position the ball well
despite fatigue from drives down field, and he has been able to get the ball
down on McCallums kicking tee every time. But the units alignment was off the
last game. Before the season started, McCallum said his leg is not as strong as
it used to be, but he is still able to make kicks when necessary. Lions coach
Mike Benevides said he has no concerns about the 2011 CFL special teams player
of the years ability to perform when necessary. Benevides expressed confidence
that McCallums video sessions with special teams coach Chuck McMann will pay
off. “It was a great exercise to go through,” said Benevides. “He looked at his
mechanics. He looked at his tempo and his strike. He looked at the previous 12
kicks of this season and he was able to analyze (them).” Benevides is more
concerned about McCallum having to make tackles. The kicker saved a touchdown
onn the first of Jacksons two returns as he got in the Roughriders way enough to
bring him down.dddddddddddd But McCallum was blocked on the second as Jackson
took the ball all the way back. “Its not what hes good at, and I dont want him
to do that,” said Benevides. “But its part of the deal. If hes gotta make it,
just slow (the returner) down a little bit, so someone else can get him.”
Admitting tackles are not a strong point of his game, McCallum, the last player
back on kick returns, just tries to be a “speed bump” and slow the returner
down. In 2009, McCallum was limited to seven regular-season games after being
injured while making a tackle on a return against Hamilton. Although Benevides
recognizes that McCallum has to make a tackle when necessary, he would prefer
that the kicker not be placed in a position where he has to get anywhere close
to the returner. “Paul is a safety for the field side,” said McCallum. “We dont
want him to be involved. We dont want him to be involved. We want everybody else
to make the play.” Meanwhile, Nick Moore will make his first start of the season
at wide receiver for the Lions after Kierrie Johnson fractured his forearm on a
touchdown reception against Saskatchewan. Johnson is expected to be out until at
least October. Moore is grateful for the opportunity after experiencing injury
troubles of his own and losing a starter spot last season. The 26-year-old
Westerville, Ohio native separated his shoulder in the 2011 season opener
against Montreal and then suffered a case of the drops after he returned. As a
result, he appeared in five games and made only five receptions. Moore spent the
first three games on the practice roster. Lions general manager Wally Buono said
in pre-season that this is a make-or-break season for the second-year Lion.
Moore had a strong training camp, earning heavy praise from Benevides, and
scored two touchdowns in a 44-10 pre-season victory over Saskatchewan. The coach
based his decision to go with Moore largely on his camp and pre-season showings.
Moore is banking on the early results to help him in his first regular-season
contest of 2012. “Last year was a frustrating year for me,” said Moore. “To be
able to have a successful training camp and go out there in the first pre-season
game and be able to make some plays, it helped my confidence tremendously.”
Quarterback Travis Lulay said Moore has looked comfortable in his second season.
He predicted Moore will perform well in Johnsons absence. “Mentally, hes in a
good frame of mind,” said Lulay. “You can tell hes excited to have an
opportunity, and thats what you want. You want to play with a guy whos hungry to
play well and play good assignment football and prove that he belongs.” Notes:
B.C. slotback Geroy Simon will play despite suffering a dislocated finger in
Saskatchewan. ... Rookie defensive end Brandon Peguese will replace fellow DE
Rajon Henley. Benevides said the move is designed mainly to use Peguese on punt
returns. The first-year CFLer will not be used on field goals. ’ ’ ’
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