2024 CFL Draft Results – Kevin Mital with the Argonauts

MONTREAL – Geoffrey Cantin-Arku believes in his chances of convincing the Miami Dolphins, but he would have an excellent plan B with the Montreal Alouettes who bet on him in the first round.

“I wouldn’t have wanted to hear my name with any other team than Montreal. It’s certain that the NFL, with the Dolphins, remains my first option. However, I’m not wrong, the Alouettes are the team of my youth, I watched them play. I am really grateful that the leaders believe in me,” Cantin-Arku said directly a few minutes after the announcement of his selection.

Interestingly, the 25-year-old Quebec linebacker clarified that he does not plan to strive for a second opportunity in the NFL if the Dolphins do not retain him at the end of the rookie mini-camp from May 10 to 12.

“No, the important thing is to play. If I stop for a season or wait for another opportunity when I have one within my reach, I don’t think that would be right. I’m going to give it my all with the Dolphins and I think I’m going to crack the roster. If I have to come home, it will be a pleasure to be an Alouette,” he commented.

Tuesday morning, we told you the story of Cantin-Arku whom Danny Maciocia, the general manager of the Alouettes, described as a “beautiful soul”.

It was therefore not such a big coincidence that he was drafted, a few hours later, by the Montreal club.

“We had targeted him in the top-2 or top-3 of the draft. Even during the first round, we discussed whether it was worth trading a few picks to move forward (in order to take it earlier). Fortunately, it didn’t work and he was still available in ninth place,” explained Maciocia at the end of the first round.

Cantin-Arku experienced this evening full of emotions in Lévis in the company of his mother, Nancy, and Christian Pelletier, who was his first football coach. He felt great emotions.

“For sure, I’m a guy from Quebec. I often went to Montreal when I was young. It’s special to be an Alouette,” described the six-foot-three, 240-pound colossus.

The Alouettes are ready to wait, they believe that the risk of selecting him was more than justified.

“It’s a mini-camp, it’s a weekend. He’s going to give everything and we’re going to see what happens. We should have news at the beginning of the following week,” Maciocia put things into perspective while Cantin-Arku was almost drafted in the seventh and final round by the San Francisco 49ers.

What is beyond doubt is that the 25-year-old athlete would fit perfectly into the Alouettes’ defensive identity.

“Precisely, he fits very well into our culture and with what we do on the defensive side. We spoke with him several times in the last few days, we spoke in detail about his role. If he played in the CFL, he wanted to play for the Alouettes. For us, it’s a natural fit,” targeted Maciocia.

“In my opinion, he will be an impact player. He will play on special teams and he will have an impact on the defensive side,” he added.

Cantin-Arku, who played for the Syracuse and Memphis college programs, already envisions himself helping his next team – whether in the NFL or CFL – win a championship. His other mission is to remain an excellent teammate since “it is very important to be a good human in life”.

Just before the Alouettes, the Calgary Stampeders made a trade to acquire the eighth pick and drafted Montreal offensive lineman Christy Nkanu. According to Maciocia, this did not change the staff’s plans.

“The player we really wanted was Geoffrey. “It’s certain that (Nathaniel) Dumoulin-Duguay – who was chosen 7th by Hamilton – was on our list,” assured the CEO.

“Geoffrey had a lot of production whether in Syracuse or Memphis. He participated in nearly 900 games on special teams,” Maciocia said of this player who should dominate in this facet.

Let us add that Maciocia was proud, but not surprised, to see that five Quebecers were drafted in the first round.

“It shows how healthy Quebec football is and it doesn’t surprise me with the quality of this vintage. There are still excellent players in this draft,” he concluded.

In the third round, the Alouettes selected defensive back Arthur Hamlin from Colgate. Then with their fourth pick, Montreal turned to Micah Roane, the defensive lineman from South Dakota. In fifth, the Alouettes turned to Laval University by drafting wide receiver Frederik Antoine. At the 56th level, Maciocia added running back Michael Herzog to his ranks. Receiver Jamal Mohsen also joined the ranks of the Alouettes with the 65th selection. With the 74th and final choice of this 2024 edition of the draft, the Alouettes named Vincent Delisle who played as a defensive back with the Rouge et Or.

Mital with the Argonauts

Earlier in the first round, Quebec receiver from the Rouge et Or from Laval University, Kevin Mital, was selected fifth by the Toronto Argonauts. Mital was listed 10th in the Canadian League Central Scouting for this draft. On the Rouge et Or website, the Quebecer is presented as a six-foot-one receiver with a weight of 215 pounds.

With the very first pick of the night, the Edmonton Elks selected linebacker Joel Dublanko. The Elks held the first seed after finishing the 2023 season with a 4-14 record. After finishing his college career at Cincinnati, Dublanko spent time in the New Orleans Saints and Seattle Seahawks organizations before playing for the Philadelphia Stars of the United States Football League in 2023. Red and Black continued at second with Auburn University receiver Nick Mardner.

The top-3 of this 2024 vintage was completed by offensive lineman Kyle Hergel who headed to Saskatchewan to join the Roughriders.

The first Quebecer was chosen in fourth position, Benjamin Labrosse. The latter will continue his career in the Calgary Stampeders organization. The defensive back played in the university ranks for McGill University.

Mital’s teammate, Nathaniel Dumoulin-Duguay became a member of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats organization with the 7th pick of the first round

CFL Global Draft Summary

The Edmonton Elks selected linebacker Eteva Mauga-Clements first overall in the CFL World Draft earlier in the day Tuesday. The 24-year-old spent three seasons at the University of Nebraska (2000-02), playing defense and on special teams.

The Montreal Alouettes have made two selections. With the 9th pick, they selected kicker Sam Clark from James Madison University. In 49 kicks, he amassed 2,122 yards. The Lilyfield, Australia native began his career with the Sacramento State University Hornets where the 27-year-old played two seasons amassing 4,016 yards on 96 punts. In 2021 he was named to the All-Big Sky Conference Third Team.

Then, at 18th place, Montreal added Nouredin Nouili, who plays on the offensive line, from the University of Nebraska where he spent four seasons. In 2021, 2022 and 2023, he earned Academic All-Big-Ten Conference honors.