The CFL draft is an annual sports draft in which the teams of the Canadian Football League (CFL) select eligible Canadian/non-import players, typically from the ranks of U Sports football or NCAA college football. Member clubs make selections based on the reverse order of the previous year's standings, with the team with the worst record being awarded the first selection, the Grey Cup runner-up getting the second-to-last selection and the Grey Cup champion selecting last. The draft is held once every year, approximately six weeks prior to the start of the upcoming season.
Jason Pottinger is a former professional Canadian football linebacker who played in the Canadian Football League (CFL). He was drafted second overall by the BC Lions in the 2006 CFL Draft. He played CIS football for the McMaster Marauders.
The 2006 CFL Draft took place on Thursday, April 20, 2006. 50 players were chosen from among eligible players from Canadian Universities across the country, as well as Canadian players playing in the NCAA. Trades that occurred with the now defunct Ottawa Renegades were still valid, adding picks to both the second and fourth rounds, but any selections that were still held by the Renegades were justly skipped. Of the 50 draft selections, 26 players were drafted from Canadian Interuniversity Sport institutions.
The 2008 CFL Draft took place on Wednesday, April 30, 2008, live at 12:00 PM ET on TSN.ca. A total of 48 players were chosen from among 752 eligible players from Canadian Universities across the country, as well as Canadian players playing in the NCAA. Of the 48 draft selections, 33 players were drafted from Canadian Interuniversity Sport institutions.
The 2009 CFL Draft took place on Saturday, May 2, 2009 at 11:00 AM ET on TSN. 48 players were chosen from among 774 eligible players from Canadian universities across the country, as well as Canadian players playing in the NCAA. Of the 48 draft selections, 38 players were drafted from Canadian Interuniversity Sport institutions, including the first seven.
The 2003 CFL Draft took place on Wednesday, April 30, 2003. 53 players were chosen for Canadian Football League teams from among the eligible CIS football players from Canadian universities, as well as Canadian players playing in the NCAA. Of the 53 draft selections, 32 players were drafted from Canadian Interuniversity Sport institutions.
The 2000 CFL Draft took place on Tuesday, April 18, 2000. 46 players were chosen for Canadian Football League teams from among the 504 eligible CIAU football players from Canadian universities, as well as Canadian players playing in the NCAA. Of the 46 draft selections, 22 players were drafted from Canadian Interuniversity Athletics Union institutions.
The 2010 CFL Draft took place on Sunday, May 2, 2010 at 12:00 PM ET on TSN. 47 players were chosen from among eligible players from Canadian universities across the country, as well as Canadian players playing in the NCAA. After a number of trades, including ones made on draft day, Toronto and BC wound up with the most picks with nine apiece. The defending Grey Cup champions, the Montreal Alouettes, had seven, while the Calgary Stampeders had six. The Edmonton Eskimos, Hamilton Tiger-Cats, Winnipeg Blue Bombers and the Saskatchewan Roughriders each had four. Of the 47 draft selections, 36 players were drafted from Canadian Interuniversity Sport institutions.
Derrell Robertson was an American college football player from Tyler, Texas who played for Mississippi State University in 1988 and 1989. After college, Robertson signed with the Las Vegas Posse of the Canadian Football League in 1994. Robertson was killed in a car crash in December 1994 but was still drafted by the Ottawa Rough Riders in a dispersal draft after the Posse folded.
Joseph Eppele is a former Canadian football offensive lineman. He was drafted second overall by the Toronto Argonauts in the 2010 CFL Draft, being the first offensive lineman taken while being ranked fifth overall by the CFL's Amateur Scouting Bureau. He played college football for the Washington State Cougars.
The 2011 CFL Draft took place on Sunday, May 8, 2011 at 12:30 PM ET on TSN. 47 players were chosen from among eligible players from Canadian Universities across the country, as well as Canadian players playing in the NCAA. The Toronto Argonauts, Montreal Alouettes and Hamilton Tiger-Cats had the most draft selections with a total of seven apiece. Next came the Calgary Stampeders and Winnipeg Blue Bombers who each had six selections. The BC Lions and Saskatchewan Roughriders both picked five times. The Edmonton Eskimos had the fewest picks, with only four. A total of five trades involving 14 draft picks were made on the draft day itself. Of the 47 draft selections, 34 players were drafted from Canadian Interuniversity Sport institutions.
The 2012 CFL Draft took place on Thursday, May 3, 2012 at 3:00 PM ET on TSN. 45 players were chosen from among eligible players from Canadian Universities across the country, as well as Canadian players playing in the NCAA. The Calgary Stampeders had the most selections with eight, while Hamilton had seven picks. The Toronto Argonauts and Montreal Alouettes each had six and the Edmonton Eskimos and Winnipeg Blue Bombers had five picks. The defending Grey Cup champion BC Lions and the Saskatchewan Roughriders had the fewest selections with just four. A total of three trades involving 11 draft picks in this draft were made on the draft day itself. Of the 45 draft selections, 24 players were drafted from Canadian Interuniversity Sport institutions, which is the lowest percentage of CIS players taken since 2006. It is also the lowest number of CIS players taken since the 2000 CFL Draft when just 22 out of 46 players were chosen.
The 2013 CFL Draft took place on Monday, May 6, 2013, at 12:00 PM ET on TSN. 60 players were chosen from among eligible players from Canadian Universities across the country, as well as Canadian players playing in the NCAA. The Montreal Alouettes had the most selections with nine, followed by the Hamilton Tiger-Cats with eight. Each of the West Division teams had seven picks while Winnipeg had six. The defending Grey Cup champion Toronto Argonauts had five picks and Ottawa chose four players from NCAA schools that would play another year. A total of 16 trades were made involving draft picks from this year, including two made on draft day itself, with 12 being made by the Edmonton Eskimos. Of the 60 draft selections, 44 players were drafted from Canadian Interuniversity Sport institutions, which is the highest number of CIS players taken since the 1987 CFL Draft when 50 of 72 were taken. It is also the highest percentage (73.3%) of CIS players taken since 2009.
The 2014 CFL Draft took place on Tuesday, May 13, 2014 at 7:00 PM ET on TSN. 65 players were chosen from among eligible players from Canadian Universities across the country, as well as Canadian players playing in the NCAA. A total of 19 trades were made involving draft picks from this year, including six made on draft day itself, with five involving picks from the first round.
The 2014 Ottawa Redblacks season was the first season for the team in the Canadian Football League. The Redblacks are the third CFL franchise to play in the city of Ottawa, and the first since the suspension of the Renegades in 2006. The Redblacks finished the season in fourth place in the East Division with a 2–16 record and were eliminated from playoff contention after a week 16 loss to the BC Lions.
The 2015 CFL Draft took place on Tuesday, May 12, 2015, at 8:00 PM ET on TSN2 and RDS2. 62 players were chosen from among eligible players from Canadian Universities across the country, as well as Canadian players playing in the NCAA.
The 2016 CFL Draft took place on Tuesday, May 10, 2016 at 7:00 PM ET on TSN2 and RDS2. 70 players were chosen from among eligible players from Canadian Universities across the country, as well as Canadian players playing in the NCAA. The draft was expanded to eight rounds, which is the most since there were eight rounds in the 1992 CFL Draft. This draft also featured the most draft selections since 1987 when 72 players were drafted.
The 2020 CFL Draft took place on April 30, 2020 at 8:00 pm ET and was broadcast on TSN and RDS. 73 players were chosen from among eligible players from Canadian Universities across the country, as well as Canadian players playing in the NCAA. This was the second year in a row that featured territorial picks after they were re-introduced in the 2019 CFL Draft.
Nicholas Arbuckle is an American professional Canadian football quarterback who is a free agent. He has been a member of the Calgary Stampeders, Ottawa Redblacks, Toronto Argonauts, and Edmonton Elks of the Canadian Football League (CFL).
The 2023 CFL National Draft was a selection of National players by Canadian Football League teams that took place on May 2, 2023, at 8:00 pm ET. 72 players were chosen from among eligible players from Canadian Universities across the country, as well as Canadian players playing in the NCAA and NAIA.