U of M Bison Jayden McKoy Ready for Regional Combine

Jayden McKoy has a gazillion things running through his head as he prepares for the Canadian Football League’s Western Regional Combine this week.

The University of Manitoba defensive back has been working and training for months for this shot – a handful of participants will get invitations to this weekend’s National Combine – and the amount of advice, tips and suggestions he’s received is enough to make a man’s cranium explode.

McKoy also knows this: whether it is real or perceived and whether it provides even the tiniest mental or physical advantage, being at home this week is a good thing for himself, his five Bisons teammates, and the eight Manitobans participating.

“Oh man, that’s definitely a huge advantage for us,” McKoy told bluebombers.com this week. “It’s funny, (Bisons linebacker) Houston Rennie and myself went to the East-West Bowl last year but actually missed the combine last year because the Toronto airport was going through some construction and we had to wait 12 hours at the Winnipeg airport. That threw us off for the week because we ended up getting there and had to be thrown right into practice.

“We both live in the south end and are two minutes away from the Subway Soccer Complex and I think that’s to our advantage. It’s really good to know I’ll be able to wake up in my own bed, eat my own food and not have to worry about travelling and all that stuff. We are creatures of habit and that’s going to be huge for us.

“We’ll also hopefully have a bunch of our teammates there cheering us on.”

In addition to McKoy and Rennie, the other Bisons are offensive lineman Anthony Daley, defensive back Tyler Fong, linebacker James Mau and wide receiver Stephen Ugbah. Two Winnipeg Rifles – running backs Michael Ritchott and Odun Ogidan – are attending as are Winnipegger Curtis Krahn (OL, Calgary Dinos), St. Lazare product Brooks Falloon (DB, Saskatchewan Huskies) and Taylor Maloney (WR, Minot State) and Dylan Minshull (LB, Calgary Colts) of Brandon.

Western Regional Combine presented by adidas participant list

McKoy, a 5-10, 185-pound engineering student, was a Canada West All-Star in 2017 after finishing the season with 34.5 tackles and three interceptions in eight games. He wasn’t invited to the National Combine, but hopes he has done the work to pop off the page in front of CFL coaches, scouts and GMs on Thursday.

They’ll be put through the paces with the usual tests – 40-yard sprint, short shuttle and 3-cone drill, vertical jump, bench press and positional drills and one-on-ones – before being told around 4 p.m. who has earned a spot in the weekend’s event at RBC Convention Centre and University of Winnipeg RecPlex.

“Over the past couple of weeks, the group of Bisons that are headed to the regional have been trying to get on the field and run through those specific drills,” said McKoy. “Teague Sherman (Former Bomber/Bison) has been through the draft process and the combine and he’s been running us through some of the specific drills we’re going to go through just so we can get used to what we’re going to be doing there.

“Even the 40-yard dash… learning how to get into a three-point stance, accelerating and getting to your top speed is something you have to specifically practice. A lot of drills at the combine you have to train specifically for, but they notify you ahead of time so you practice them as much as you can.

“For sure they’re looking at the numbers to see who pops out, but they want to know at the end of the day if you’re good at football and that’s a big part in proving it.”

McKoy has also heard from current Bombers linebacker Thomas Miles and another Bombers/Bisons alum in Louie Richardson. Again, the more a prospect knows, the more comfortable he is, the better his chances to succeed.

“You try and take all this in, take the advice of the people that have been through it and go out there and do your best,” McKoy said. “You know all the explosive athletes are going to put up huge numbers, but I feel part of it is just being able to control your nerves and not letting the fact there are going to be tons of scouts there get into your head.

“It’s all coming down to one day. You’ve played out your season, but the combine is one eight-hour day to show what you’ve got. On top of being able to flush out bad plays or bad reps, you also have to be able to finish. If you run through the 3-cone drill, for example, and you slip – you can’t stop. You have to finish that rep no matter what. It’s important to get your mind into that mental state: to battle and finish no matter what. That’s huge in all sports.

“I usually block out nerves in the days before, but I know I’ll be nervous the day of the combine. Personally, I have to rely on my preparation. I’ve been playing football for 10 years now and preparing specifically for this combine for months now. It’s just relying on that and trusting myself. That’s the biggest thing for me. I can’t worry about the outcomes in the moment, I just have to show them what I’ve got.”

THURSDAY, MARCH 22 – SUBWAY SOCCER SOUTH

Order of testing: OL, DL, RB, LB, K, WR, DB

9 a.m. – Height & weight, hand & arm measurements, video shot, vertical jump and bench press (225 lbs)

11 a.m. – 40-yard dash, short shuttle and 3-cone drill

1:30 p.m. – Positional drills and one-on-ones

3:50 p.m. – Announcement of players invited to CFL Combine