Wannabe CFLers take a grilling

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This article was published 26/03/2017 (3343 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

REGINA — Fifty-five of the country’s most promising young football players fill a makeshift waiting room in a hallway on the fourth level of the new Mosaic Stadium. The laughter and chit-chat of the enthusiastic crowd is, at times, overbearing. There’s also a visible sense of nervous energy in the air, which could explain the seemingly strong need to overshare.

Soon, the noise is quieted as bodies begin to shuffle into nearby suites, which for the next three hours are transformed into interrogation rooms, occupied by the highest of brass across the nine teams in the Canadian Football League.

Often viewed as the most stressful part of a player’s journey to the CFL, the one-on-one interviews at the league combine this week are an integral part of the scouting process for those who run them. Simply put, it’s a first-hand look for general managers, coaches and their scouting staff to find out the kind of vital information that goes beyond game film.

“It’s a job interview for a lot of these guys,” said Winnipeg Blue Bombers GM Kyle Walters.

Like any job interview, the goal for the employer is to strike the right balance of making sure they cover the basics, while also getting a broader understanding of who the man is off the field. It’s equally important to find out who the player is and what his interests are as it is determining where they might fit in the lineup and in the locker room.

It’s also perhaps the best way to see how much a prospect wants to fulfill his dream of playing in the CFL. It’s not always safe to simply assume a player is fully committed just because he showed up. Teams want to see a love for the game shine through; that can be difficult to do in a window that maxes out at 15 minutes.

“The bottom line is to succeed at football up here, you have to love it. You need to want to come in, you need to want to get better, you have to want to study film,” said Walters. “We try to pull that out of them as best we can to see who’s got a real passion for the game of football, who loves it and who really wants to make a career out of this.”

To get a better understanding of just how important these meetings are, the Free Press was invited to attend a number of interviews by teams — the B.C. Lions, Toronto Argonauts and Montreal Alouettes — that didn’t mind having a reporter sit in.

Here’s an inside look into two of those interviews.

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Prospect: Mitchell Picton, WR, University of Regina

Interview with: B.C. Lions

In the room: General manager and head coach Wally Buono, director of Canadian scouting and player personnel assistant Geroy Simon, director of football operations and player personnel Neil McEvoy.

Maybe it was because Picton cared so much about what he needed to say, he thought little about what he should wear.

It wasn’t that the 6-3, 205-pound receiver out of the University of Regina, donning a slim-fitted suit and a giant smile, looked out of sorts. He just wasn’t about to get away with wearing the colours of his hometown Saskatchewan Roughriders —  not while in front of Lions boss Wally Buono, who opened the interview by asking what possessed the 21-year-old to wear a green checkered shirt.

“All my other ones were dirty, honestly,” said Picton, a first-team all-Canadian who finished tops among U Sports receivers and tied a school record with 11 touchdowns for the Rams in 2016.

“That’s not a good answer,” Buono said.

If Buono’s seemingly stern response was an attempt to throw his subject off his game, it didn’t work.

Instead, for the next 10 minutes, Picton hauled in questions with relative ease, displaying the kind of collectedness he had shown over his career at the U of R. Chalked up to an ill-advised wardrobe choice, he denied his love affair with the Riders, which quickly moved the conversation on to why the Lions might consider Picton a worthy selection in the May 7 CFL Draft.

“A lot of it is just being myself,” Picton said afterward. “Go in there and be personable and show them you’re a good person who can hang out and be laid-back but also very professional.”

He was asked about his 4.71-second time in the 40-yard dash — Picton posted it during the CIS East-West Bowl combine earlier this month —and whether he felt it was fast enough. Picton said the time was a little bit slow and he vowed to be better over the weekend (He was, running a 4.674).

He was asked to describe the kind of leadership skills he possessed and whether he was willing to commit to football despite an interest in a law career and the chance to work for the family business (the Picton family owns a number of Dairy Queens in and around the Regina area). When quizzed about CFL players he models his game after, Picton referred to Chris Getzlaf and Andy Fantuz, two Canadian receivers with long careers in the CFL.

Buono then asked Picton what he believed was his best game with the Rams. When the answer touched on a game where he put up big numbers against the Calgary Dinos despite playing with an Achilles injury, Buono appeared pleased.

“I’m glad that you can play a little bit injured,” Buono said.

He then asked Picton if he considered himself “Regina tough?”

“Saskatchewan tough,” Picton corrected.

All seemed to go well, but there was still one pressing issue for Buono.

“Would orange look good on you?” he asked.

“I think it would look great on me,” said Picton.

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Prospect: Nathaniel Hamlin, DB, Carleton University

Interview with: Toronto Argonauts

In the room: General manager Jim Popp, assistant GM Spencer Zimmerman and director of Canadian scouting Vince Magri.

Staring into two bright TV lights, Carleton University defensive back Nathaniel Hamlin took a moment to rub his eyes, ensuring he could see the three men seated in front of him.

Popp took the spot directly across the table from Hamlin. The meeting had been delayed a few minutes while the GM conducted business in a nearby room, and it wouldn’t be until a few minutes in that Popp would truly make his presence noticed.

After Hamlin breezed through some of the early questions — What is your best strength? What does an average day during the football season look like? Tell us about your family — Popp finally found an answer he took issue with.

Hamlin, who was named an OUA second team all-star with 22 unassisted tackles, two pass breakups and five kick returns for 93 yards, had just been asked to describe his weaknesses. Although he said he felt he needed improvement in a number of areas, he appeared to hit a nerve at one particular part of his assessment.

“I’d say everything but definitely, like, focus,” Hamlin said. “I got to continue playing every play — no plays off.”

It was a comment that raised the eyebrows in the room and completely changed the mood and direction of the interview.

“Why is that?” asked Popp.

Judging the shift in the room, Hamlin was sure to mention it wasn’t for a lack of effort or interest in football. He just felt that when his team played with a large-enough lead, or he was matched up against a weaker opponent, he seemed to take his foot off the gas just a bit.

Asked about the question afterward, Hamlin insisted he was just being honest.

“Obviously if they ask you a question you have to be honest,” said Hamlin after the interview.

“If they ask you about your weaknesses you have to answer it.”

What came next in the interview was a predictable line of questioning around Hamlin’s love of the game. The Argos asked if he felt pressured to play football because his father, Geoff Hamlin, also pursued a career in the CFL, playing two games for the Blue Bombers in 1973. He was asked if he felt he was strong enough to play in the league (Hamlin is 6-1, 205 pounds) and whether he felt like he could fit into a CFL locker room (He felt he could, once he shook the nerves).

“To play in the CFL has definitely been a dream since I was a kid, since I started watching games on TV,” said Hamlin.

“I always wanted to be a pro athlete and football is the best way to do that.”

jeff.hamilton@freepress.mb.ca twitter: @jeffkhamilton