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From CIS to NFL

From CIS to NFL

By David Naylor

Just 21 players have reached the NFL from the humble ranks of Canadian university football. Samuel Gigučre wants to be the 22nd.

The University of Sherbrooke receiver isn't likely to hear his name during the seven rounds of drafting that will take place tomorrow and Sunday in New York. But he hopes he'll attract enough attention afterward to warrant at least an invitation to a training camp.

Each year, a Canadian university player or two creates some buzz about an NFL future. A few have been drafted and more have been invited for a cup of coffee at training camps before being dismissed. Gigučre thinks he can be one of the few who makes it.

"I've always looked up to the NFL and it's always been a dream of mine," Gigučre said. "But I never thought until recently it could really happen so it's fairly recent that I've started to think about it. I'm really fast but I'm also big and strong compared to the standard wide receiver. I think it's that whole package that sets me apart."

Gigučre's strength and speed may be his biggest assets - he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.49 seconds, had a 42-inch vertical jump and bench-pressed 225 pounds 17 times at the CFL evaluation camp in March. But the list of things going against him is considerable.

By his own admission, he's a long way from a finished product as a receiver, the result of facing inferior competition at the collegiate level in comparison to players he must beat out for a job. And he comes from a school that, even by Canadian standards, isn't well known for producing football talent.

There's no doubt many NFL teams are aware of the 5-foot-11, 211-pound receiver. But if the analysts are right, he'll be hard-pressed to make the grade.

"Gigučre has an impressive build," wrote Rob Rang, a senior analyst with nfldraftscout.com, which ranks Gigučre 105th out of 336 wide receivers eligible this weekend.

"His willingness to spend time in the weight room and develop his craft is apparent. He is an adequate route-runner and caught the ball cleanly in all games viewed. Of concern is that while Gigučre has reportedly been timed in the 4.4s, this speed is not evident on the football field despite his gaudy statistics. He accelerates smoothly and tops out at a good speed, but he lacks burst out of his breaks to gain separation and lacks elite acceleration to run away from NFL-calibre defenders."

A scan down the list of Canadian Interuniversity Sport players who have made the jump to the NFL reveals an emphasis on specialists (kickers, punters or long snappers) and linemen, with few players at the so-called skill positions ever sticking.

Like Gigučre, former McMaster University running back Jesse Lumsden, now with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, did well in physical testing and attracted a fair bit of NFL interest. But he was twice released during training camp and a lot of NFL teams simply couldn't get past his Canadian university pedigree.

"In our case with Lumsden, it was very difficult to get him on the radar screen," said Dan Rambo, a former scout with the Denver Broncos who is now player personnel director for the Tiger-Cats. "And he had more stats than anyone and he ran well and tested well in the East-West Shrine game. In Gigučre's case, the perception of Sherbooke to NFL people is that it's not a well-known football school so you have to have a perfect game when exposed."

Unfortunately, Gigučre did not have a perfect game in the Shrine Bowl, dropping two passes thrown his way in what he calls "the worst feeling ever."

Despite those odds, Gigučre can look to two recent examples of players who've been able to buck the odds and make the leap to NFL football successfully.

Last season, former Manitoba Bisons defensive lineman Israel Idonije was named an alternate to the Pro Bowl as a member of the Chicago Bears, one season after he went to the Super Bowl as a member of that team. Former Calgary Dinos lineman Dan Federkeil collected a Super Bowl ring with the Indianapolis Colts in 2007 and played eight games with the Colts last season.

From the CIS to the NFL

1945 Joe Krol, Western Ontario, K/RB.

1947 Les Lear, Manitoba, OG/OT.

1960 Bill Crawford, UBC, OG.

1965 Jim Young, Queen's, RB/R.

1976 Brian Fryer, Alberta, R.

1979 Ken Clark, Saint Mary's, P.

1986 Mike Schad, Queen's, OG.

1987 Brian Belway, Calgary, DE.

1987 Dave Sparenberg, Western Ontario, OG.

1987 Brant Bengen, UBC and Idaho, WR.

1988 Dean Dorsey, Toronto, K.

1992 Tyrone Williams, Western Ontario, WR.

1995 Tim Tindale, Western Ontario, RB.

1995 Mark Montreuil, Concordia, CB.

1998 Jerome Pathon, Acadia and Washington, R.

2001 Randy Chevrier, McGill, LS/DE.

2000 J.P. Darche, McGill, LS/LB.

2003 Israel Idonije, Manitoba, DL.

2004 Steve Morley, Saint Mary's, OG/OT.

2006 Daniel Federkeil, Calgary, DE.

2006 Jon Ryan, Regina, K.