Edmonton Elks Head coach and general manager Chris Jones had 10 picks in Draft CFL 2022 starting Tuesday night.
The club’s first pick was in the first round in fourth overall when they picked Coastal Carolina defensive full-back Enock Makonzo.
During the 2021 season, Makonzo scored a total of 71 tackles and 3 compulsions in 13 matches, earning the 2021 all-time runner-up title.
Jones said Makonzo offers the versatility he is looking for in a defensive player.
“He can play it safe, he can play the SAM linebacker and he can play the WORLD defender,” Jones said.
“He can play in three or four special teams, so he has to be an extremely effective footballer for us.”
For the eighth overall selection, Elks chose the dynamic Waterloo Tre Ford. He’s played six games in 2021, scoring 1,465 yards of throws for 10 touchdowns while adding 667 yards of dash and three touchdowns. He was named the winner of the 2021 Hec Crighton Award, given to the best player in Canadian college football.
Ford didn’t make for 40 yards in the CFL final, picking a 4th in the 40th minute of his professional day at the University at Buffalo.
Like Makonzo, he says, he finds a lot of flexibility with Ford.
“He’s used to having the ball in his hand and he’s going to be good at going out into space,” Jones said. “Ford is a big competitor and you can tell he feels he should be ahead of the pack overall.
“That’s what you want…a competitive guy.”
With a new rule in 2022 allowing two midfielders to be on the field at the same time, Jones said he sees Ford as the perfect fit to capitalize on that rule.
“If you look at high school football in (USA), the best player on the team is usually a full-back or a full-back,” he said. “Boys like that are used to having the ball in their hands.
“The rule now, allowing you to have more than one midfielder on the pitch, sometimes allows you to be more creative.”
Ford was the first Canadian full-back selected in the first round of the CFL Draft since 1980.
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