Mitchell Blair
24 hours after the CFL draft was over, Riders general manager Brendan Taman was like the rest of his CFL counterparts evaluating what had transpired and hoping his team had selected some players that will become household names in the Rider Nation.
In what was a wild draft, particularly in the first round when trades galore were made, the Riders picked up eight players on a night that Taman thought went pretty well.
The Riders got involved in the whirlwind of trades that dominated the first round by trading their first pick, 8th overall, to Hamilton for their two second round picks—11 and 17. The Riders then took that 17th pick and dealt it to Winnipeg for picks 20 and 26. Taman says there was rhyme behind the reason of trading down.
“We felt by moving down that we would still get the quality we were going to get with the picks we traded, “Taman explained. “Once some guys were off the board, we knew we could trade down.
With that 11th pick, the team reached to a school that has been kind to them in the past as they selected defensive lineman Dylan Ainsworth from the University of Western Ontario Mustangs.
“I know you hear this every year, but Dylan was a guy we were hoping would be there at 11 because he is who we wanted.” Taman said. “He was the guy we wanted; we just had to figure a way to get him without sacrificing a lot. He’s 21 years old and is one of the youngest kids in the draft. He’s very physical and was rated as the best special teams prospect. I think he’s got a special future in front of him.”
Ainsworth is quite happy to start his pro career in green as he was delighted to get that phone call from the Grey Cup champions.
“It’s amazing,” Ainsworth proclaimed. “I was ecstatic when that phone rang and it was the Riders on the other end. It’s great to come to a team that is established and has a winning tradition. They have a lot of pieces in place and they are the defending champs so I would love nothing more to help them do it again.”
With the departure of Keith Shologan and Zack Evans, the 6 foot 3, 225 pound native of Delta, B.C feels as if he is being given an opportunity to compete right off the bat.
“It’s a great opportunity to learn from the established players and the coaches.” Ainsworth said. ”The first thing I want to do is just make the roster. I want to be able to do my thing on special teams and then work my way onto the d-line and learn as much as I can.”
While the team’s first round pick is excited to be heading to Riderville, the team’s second round pick is just as thrilled to be a member of the Grey Cup champions. That second round pick was receiver Alex Pierzchalski from the University of Toronto. The 6 foot 3 220 pound receiver hauled in 51 passes for the Varsity Blues in 2013 with nine of those catches going for touchdowns. He has drawn comparisons to Riders slotback Chris Getzlaf and that is just fine with him.
“I would like to believe that I am in the Chris Getzlaf mold,” Pierzchalski said. “I haven’t met Chris yet, but (head coach) Corey Chamblin has said he sees some of the same traits in him that he sees with me when it comes to the way I approach the game and play it. I would say I have a similar body type and that we share the same kind of play so I am excited to have a chance to meet Chris and learn from him.”
Pierzchalski is grateful for the opportunity to play for the Riders and believes they are a perfect fit for him.
“My first interview was with the Riders and I left having a real good feeling about them.” Pierzchalski said. Brendan, coach Chamblin, offensive co-ordinator George Cortez and Bob Dyce all showed me what professionals they are and I left that get-together feeling very positive so to end up with them is just awesome.
The 6 foot 5, 220 pound London, Ontario native is also excited at one other thing as he gets ready to head west for training camp and that is to experience the Rider Nation and Riderville first hand.
“Riderville is the strongest and most renowned fan base in the CFL and it’s something I can’t even imagine at this point. “Pierzchalski stated. “I’ve seen many games on TV, but I can’t envision what it’s actually like until I get there and experience the fans and the culture. I’m so excited at the opportunity to represent this team.”
The six other players taken were
– K/P John Mark (University of Calgary)
– WR Kristopher Bastien (Concordia)
– DB Matt Webster (Queens)
– OL Kyle Paterson (Regina)
– LB Travis Bent (Concordia)
– OL Terry Hart (St. Francis Xavier)
All are expected to be in training camp when the team heads to Saskatoon at the end of the month with the first exhibition game now less than a month away when the expansion Ottawa REDBLACKS play their first game at Mosaic Stadium on Saturday, June 14th.
