MontrealAlouettes.com
Montreal – With the 2011 CFL Canadian Draft only a day away, fans across the country have been anxiously awaiting Blue Bombers General Manager Joe Mack to get things rolling with the first overall pick.
However, while the draft may represent a day of excitement for fans, it has also been known to prove stressful for some of the highly-touted prospects. Fortunately, this isn’t always the case as Alouettes middle linebacker Shea Emry, drafted seventh overall in 2008, illustrates below.
MontrealAlouettes.com spoke with the burgeoning CFL star about his draft experience.
MontrealAlouettes.com: So, tell us how you prepared for the day?
Shea Emry: It was pretty early in the morning at home in BC and I had a few of my friends and family over. It was before TSN had started broadcasting the draft live on TV so we had to watch it on the CFL’s website. We were all huddled around two laptops with very slow internet just trying to find the fastest feed.
MA: Do you remember the phone call from Jim Popp?
SE: I was told by a few people close to me that I would be taken in the first round and since I’m from BC I had a slight inkling that I’d be taken by the Lions – but when they passed on me with the fifth pick it was all open from there. Then, the next thing I knew, my phone was ringing with a 514 area code and everyone around me was getting excited. I picked it up and Jim was on the other line asking “Hi Shea. How do you feel about being a Montreal Alouette?”
MA: What else did he say?
SE: I was so elated that I really don’t remember!
MA: Did you care about which team was going to draft you?
SE: Not really. Again, people were telling me that I was likely going to be taken in the first round. Thing is, Montreal never really showed that much of an interest in me during the combines or the interview process so I was a little shocked and excited since I always heard that Montreal was one of the best cities to play in.
MA: Speaking of the interview process, could you tell us about some of the questions that you were asked?
SE: Since I still had a couple of years of university eligibility left, a lot of teams were asking me if I was ready to leave school to go pro. Every single team asked me about my strengths and weaknesses. I just told them that like everyone else I have a lot of weaknesses so it was just a matter of correcting them and making myself better in any way possible.
MA: How easy of a decision was it to leave university for the CFL?
SE: In all honesty, it was probably one of the easiest decisions of my life. It’s always been a dream of mine to play professional football and I had a golden opportunity to achieve it. As soon as the opportunity presented itself, nothing was going to stop me. I knew I was going to be ready right away so as soon as I found out I was going to be drafted, my focus shifted entirely towards the combine and making myself the best player I could be.
MA: Any advice for this year’s crop of rookies?
SE: Don’t take it all so seriously. Everyone in the CFL is pretty welcoming to new guys. A lot of guys come in nervous so it’s just a matter of coming in and working hard. I had a few friends go through the combines this year and I just told them to be themselves, have fun meeting all the guys and enjoy the process. I guess that’s what life is all about.
