The top 15 players not attending the 2025 CFL Combine
The 2025 CFL Combine is set for Regina, Sask., where close to 75 players will compete to boost their stock ahead of the 2025 CFL Draft.
Not every top prospect has chosen to attend the event, however, as several potential first-round picks elected instead to do pro days or even garnered invitations to the NFL Combine. This isn’t uncommon, particularly for NCAA prospects, though that means they can sometimes be lost in the hubbub of CFL Combine coverage.
Below is a list of top prospects not attending so they’re not forgotten during the festivities in Regina this week. Check back to 3DownNation on Thursday for our list of players to watch who are attending the CFL Combine.
DL Muftah Ageli, Northwestern Oklahoma State
The six-foot-two, 320-pound defender was a second-team U Sports All-Canadian at the University of Windsor in 2023 before transferring down south to join the NCAA Division II ranks. Ageli made 34 total tackles, four tackles for loss, one sack, one pass knockdown, and one interception over 10 games this past season. The interior lineman, who is testing at Eastern Michigan’s pro day, could be the strongest player in this year’s draft class, having done 40 reps of 225 pounds at the U Sports East-West Bowl in 2024.
REC Damien Alford, Utah
The six-foot-six, 215-pound native of Montreal, Que. made 67 catches for 1,291 yards and seven touchdowns over four seasons at Syracuse University before transferring to Utah, where he didn’t register a reception this past season. Alford originally agreed to come to this year’s CFL Combine but reneged when he gained entry into the Big 12 Pro Day, which is currently being held in Frisco, Texas.
REC Elic Ayomanor, Stanford
Of all the players on this list, Ayomanor is by far the least likely ever to play in the CFL. The native of Medicine Hat, Alta. won the Jon Cornish Trophy in 2023 and was named second-team All-ACC in 2024, catching 125 passes for 1,844 yards and 12 touchdowns over only 24 career games. He cemented his stock as a second or third-round NFL draft pick when he ran a 4.44-second forty-yard dash at the NFL Combine at six-foot-two and 206 pounds.
OL Sam Carson, Louisiana Monroe
The 23-year-old allowed eight quarterback pressures and zero sacks over eight games at left tackle this past season, according to Pro Football Focus, after previously starting two years at the University of Calgary. The six-foot-five, 300-pound blocker trails Christopher Fortin and Erik Andersen in the CFL scouting bureau rankings and will look to prove at his pro day on March 27 that he belongs in the top-tier of draft-eligible offensive linemen.
QB Taylor Elgersma, Wilfrid Laurier
The six-foot-five, 227-pound passer recently participated in the University at Buffalo pro day where he worked his way through 30 scripted throws in front of scouts from both sides of the border. Elgersma didn’t do any testing events but may have done enough at the pro day as well as the Senior Bowl to get an NFL contract for 2025 — possibly, even, as a late-round draft choice.
OL Christopher Fortin, Connecticut
The native of St-Rene, Que. was only a one-year starter at guard with the Huskies but received excellent grades from Pro Football Focus in 2024, allowing 12 pressures and zero sacks on 421 pass-blocking snaps. The six-foot-five, 300-pound blocker will test at Connecticut’s pro day on March 26. Fortin also has some versatility, having performed spot duty at tackle in 2022 and centre in 2021.
DL Hayden Harris, Montana
The six-foot-five, 255-pound edge rusher made 84 total tackles, 21.5 tackles for loss, 11.5 sacks, three forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, and one interception over two seasons with the Grizzlies, earning a second-team All-Big Sky selection in 2024. Harris, who qualified for Canadian citizenship through his mother, Tonia Lee, who was born in Vancouver, B.C., and raised in Regina, Sask., is scheduled to participate in Montana’s pro day on April 3.
DL Nate Martey, Arkansas State
The six-foot-one, 288-pound defender split his collegiate career between Princeton and Arkansas State, recording 97 total tackles, 15 tackles for loss, 8.5 sacks, one fumble recovery, and one pass knockdown over 37 games. Martey is ranked No. 14 on the CFL scouting bureau rankings but did not appear in the first two rounds of 3DownNation’s recent mock draft. The native of Ottawa, Ont. tested at Arkansas State’s pro day on Wednesday, March 19.
QB Kurtis Rourke, Indiana
The native of Oakville, Ont. garnered Heisman Trophy consideration with the Hoosiers this past season after he threw for 2,827 yards, 28 touchdowns, and four interceptions, earning a second-team All-Big Ten selection. Rourke is still working back from a torn ACL he suffered before the season but still projects as a mid-to-late-round pick in the NFL draft. The six-foot-four, 220-pound passer is the younger brother of B.C. Lions quarterback and former CFL Most Outstanding Canadian Nathan Rourke.
DL Ali Saad, Bowling Green
Saad played mostly defensive end as part of Bowling Green’s three-man front, though he projects as a CFL defensive tackle. The native of Windsor, Ont. was a two-year starter, finishing his career with 35 total tackles, 14 tackles for loss, nine sacks, 22 quarterback pressures, and four forced fumbles. The six-foot-three, 280-pound defender will participate in Bowling Green’s pro day on March 24.
DL Paris Shand, LSU
The native of Toronto, Ont. recorded 27 total tackles, nine tackles for loss, three sacks, 19 quarterback pressures, and three pass knockdowns over two seasons with the Tigers following a transfer from Arizona, starting nine games. The six-foot-four, 275-pound defender will test at LSU’s pro day on March 26, which could propel him into an NFL draft pick (which would lower his CFL draft stock) or lock him in as an undrafted NFL free agent (which would raise his CFL draft stock).
OL Tiger Shanks, UNLV
The four-year starter at tackle was only recently added to the draft — despite being born in Vancouver, B.C., he spent almost his entire childhood in China and the United States. Shanks started 51 collegiate games for the Rebels and was twice named first-team All-Mountain West. The six-foot-five, 325-pound blocker seems likely to get an NFL shot as either a late-round pick or undrafted free agent, after which the CFL could be a possibility.
LB Connor Shay, Wyoming
The six-foot-two, 227-pound defender was a late addition to this year’s draft class after qualifying for Canadian citizenship through his father, who was born in Charlottetown, P.E.I. Shay made 76 total tackles, eight tackles for loss, three pass knockdowns, 1.5 sacks, and one interception with the Cowboys this past season and ran a 4.52-second forty-yard dash at his recent pro day in front of scouts from 10 NFL teams and three CFL teams.
LB Jaylen Smith, North Texas
The native of Hamilton, Ont. lacks size — he’s only listed at five-foot-eleven — but is one of the most versatile prospects in the draft, having played as an edge rusher, standup linebacker, and slot cornerback in 2024 alone. Smith made 160 total tackles, 12.5 tackles for loss, 0.5 sacks, four pass knockdowns, two interceptions, and one forced fumble over four collegiate seasons at North Texas. He will test at his pro day on March 21.
REC Keelan White, Montana
The six-foot-two, 185-pound native of North Vancouver, B.C. rose from a walk-on to an award-winner with the Grizzlies, finishing his career with 161 catches for 1,862 yards and 14 touchdowns. Like Harris, White will participate in Montana’s pro day on April 3 where he’ll look to prove he deserves an NFL shot. If he falls short of the NFL, expect him to be taken extremely high in the CFL draft — possibly even first overall.
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