Chase Claypool & the big BC receiver army

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OV - 54:40
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Congrats to NFL rookie Chase Claypool and his recent 4 TD game (the Canadian Al Bundy :wink: ) for the Steelers; Abbotsford native who got to play at Notre Dame seems on the way to a star NFL resume - and what a target/athlete at 6-4 , 238 with a 4.42 forty and 40" vertical.

Might become top of the class of big target (6' & 200 pound plus) pass catchers the Province has produced.

Recent Lion Lemar Durant is another big load (6-2, 230) receiver who has proven a very solid CFL receiver after playing at Simon Fraser; and another big guy in Jevon Cottoy (Junior ball Langley Rams product) showed some promise last season with his BC pro team.

Going back there has also been White Rock's Teyo Johnson (6-5, 260 !) who played tight end in the NFL and in the CFL (TE & slotback) and won a GC with the Stamps. And Vancouver guy Matt Clark had a huge CFL rookie season with Doug Flutie chucking him passes and a good CFL career that also saw him get a GC ring (don't recall him as a big receiver but the old roster lists him at 6' & 225 - that is a load at receiver).

Some older or ancient (eg. Hambone) Lions' fans might be able to name some other big receivers who came out of BC to play for the Lions or other CFL teams ? Was Vince Danielsen a BC guy ? What about BC product tight ends when that position was prominent in the CFL ?

Next in line maybe is BC's Terrell Jana - playing Div I ball at Virginia - and in the top 5 of the recent CFL Scouting Bureau's list for next year's draft; a tiny guy though, listed at 6', 200 ;o)


Something in the water, or maybe the fresh mountain & ocean air ? :shock: :roar:
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OV - 54:40 wrote:
Tue Oct 13, 2020 9:14 pm
Some older or ancient (eg. Hambone) Lions' fans might be able to name some other big receivers who came out of BC to play for the Lions or other CFL teams ? Was Vince Danielsen a BC guy ?
Well, I'm more ancient than Hambone but you don't have to be old to know that Vince Danielsen was a Vancouver College product with a fascinating background. Some details:
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/na ... le4170076/
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OV - 54:40 wrote:
Tue Oct 13, 2020 9:14 pm
Some older or ancient (eg. Hambone) Lions' fans might be able to name some other big receivers who came out of BC to play for the Lions or other CFL teams ? Was Vince Danielsen a BC guy ? What about BC product tight ends when that position was prominent in the CFL ?


Although Riders' slot receiver Ray Elgaard was born in Edmonton, for all intents and purposes he was a Vancouverite, attending Magee High School where he excelled at rugby. He was ranked #36 on TSN's Top 50 CFL players of all-time.

Yes, Vince Danielsen was a standout receiver with the Stamps. I believe he was a high school quarterback here on the Lower Mainland.


DH :cool:
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Perhaps the best B.C.-born receiver was Paris Jackson (6 ft. 3, 215 lbs.) from Carson Graham in North Vancouver and the University of Utah, who ranks in the Top 10 B.C. Lions receivers of any nationality with 420 catches for 5,757 yards in 11 seasons before finishing his career in Ottawa and Edmonton.
OV - 54:40
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I forgot about one guy that helped lead me to start the topic - Rysen John - a 6-7 (!) receiver who got drafted by the Stamps out of SFU after a break-out big season there, and also had a TC look with the NY Jets.

Him & Claypool in one draft class = 2 giant BC targets.

I knew Danielsen had played at UBC (QB some but made the switch to receiver while in college ball), but i was not sure he was from BC; 6-4, 210 range, another big target,

Interesting about Elgaard, but he played college ball at Utah and was born in Alberta i believe.

I had forgot about Paris Jackson - another fine example.

What was the name of that young receiver out of Junior ball (?) a few years back who had some personal problems that led to a short CFL career - he was a big one too if i recall right ?

Lefty Hendrickon was a TE, not huge by TE standards, but another big BC guy who had a decent CFL career.
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Josh Boden He was listed at 6'1" and 212 pounds. He was charged with 2nd Deg Murder in 2018 in the 2009 death of a former girlfriend whom he reportedly blamed for cutting his football career short.

I couldn't find any record of conviction so I suspect the legal proceedings which were set to go forward early this year got derailed by Covid.
Last edited by Sir Purrcival on Wed Oct 14, 2020 10:13 am, edited 1 time in total.
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OV - 54:40
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B.C.FAN wrote:
Tue Oct 13, 2020 10:48 pm
Perhaps the best B.C.-born receiver was Paris Jackson (6 ft. 3, 215 lbs.) from Carson Graham in North Vancouver and the University of Utah, who ranks in the Top 10 B.C. Lions receivers of any nationality with 420 catches for 5,757 yards in 11 seasons before finishing his career in Ottawa and Edmonton.
Danielsen finished with 6068 CFL career receiving yards.
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Jay Christensen was a big (6 ft. 4, 215 lbs.) receiver from Kelowna who played for the Okanagan Sun before launching a 10-year CFL career with Calgary, B.C., Edmonton and Ottawa. His best season was with the Lions in 1990, when he had 62 catches for 1,036 yards and 8 TDs. He was inducted last year into the first Okanagan Sun Hall of Fame class.
OV - 54:40
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B.C.FAN wrote:
Wed Oct 14, 2020 1:52 pm
Jay Christensen was a big (6 ft. 4, 215 lbs.) receiver from Kelowna who played for the Okanagan Sun before launching a 10-year CFL career with Calgary, B.C., Edmonton and Ottawa. His best season was with the Lions in 1990, when he had 62 catches for 1,036 yards and 8 TDs. He was inducted last year into the first Okanagan Sun Hall of Fame class.
Nice - another very good one that I was unable to recall, but I certainly remember Christensen as one of those big receiver types.

There is a pretty decent list of these big BC bred pass catchers who have put up 1000 yard CFL seasons.
OV - 54:40
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Another BC guy to add to this list: Brock Aynsley (listed at 6-2, 190) who came to the CFL via Washington St. and played his first few seasons with his home Province Lions; had his best CFL season with the Als in 77 - with 39 catches & 739 yards, in a GC win season; I recall him as a speedy deep threat type WR.

And yet another - though a guy who has yet to make an impact in the pros - Raushan Simoinse (6-5, 205 size target) - big season in U Sports ball for the Dinos, but did little with the Stamps or Lions; also warranted an NFL TC look with the Bengals where i recall seeing a hi-lite of him making a nice grab for a decent gainer in an exhibition game down there; heard he is going to give a try in new US Spring league ?
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Aynsley was a deep threat but his hands failed him.
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OV - 54:40 wrote:
Wed Oct 14, 2020 9:59 am
Lefty Hendrickon was a TE, not huge by TE standards, but another big BC guy who had a decent CFL career.
Lefty wasn't huge by today's standards but he wasn't small by early 70s standards, probably average. Lefty listed at 6'1" 216. Herman "Ham Hands" Harrison went 6'3" 210. Colts legendary TE John Mackey, one of the greatest ever, was 6'2" 224.

In the era Lefty played in offensive tackles clocked in at about the size of the average NFL TE today, even smaller than some. One of BC's best at Lefty's time OT Ken Sugarman listed at 6'3" 250.
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OV - 54:40
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Hambone wrote:
Thu Oct 15, 2020 12:26 pm
OV - 54:40 wrote:
Wed Oct 14, 2020 9:59 am
Lefty Hendrickon was a TE, not huge by TE standards, but another big BC guy who had a decent CFL career.
Lefty wasn't huge by today's standards but he wasn't small by early 70s standards, probably average. Lefty listed at 6'1" 216. Herman "Ham Hands" Harrison went 6'3" 210. Colts legendary TE John Mackey, one of the greatest ever, was 6'2" 224.

In the era Lefty played in offensive tackles clocked in at about the size of the average NFL TE today, even smaller than some. One of BC's best at Lefty's time OT Ken Sugarman listed at 6'3" 250.

Yep - players are just way bigger on average today - applied diets and personal trainers, more weight room work, roids (?). However, IMO, a lot of the old stars of yesteryear who look small by today's standards could easily have bulked up with today's methods - give them one off-season of eating and training with the aim of bulking up and a lot of those guys could have comfortably added 20 or more pounds (heck i can do it with lifting two-four's ;o) ) I have old NFL yearbooks (used to get Street & Smith's when they had a little CFL section by Rick Matsumoto) - NFL O-lines back in the 80s were quite a bit smaller than your typical Canadian college ball O-line of today.


Another big BC receiver to add , and from before Lefty's time - Pat Claridge (listed at 6-2, 210) played 6 seasons for his home Province Lions via U Washington & Vancouver Blue Bomber Juniors (???) - had his best CFLseason in 64 (with some guy named Joe Kapp chucking passes) - 39 receptions for 577 yards, and made West all-star (just like Lefty was a West all-star TE for one season). StatsCrew good for old CFL rosters & stats.
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Jerome Pathon, at 6 ft. 0 and 195 lbs., may not fit the OP's definition of a big target but he was one of the most accomplished receivers to come out of B.C. Like Paris Jackson, he played high school football at Carson Graham in North Vancouver before going to Acadia for a year and then to the University of Washington. A second-round NFL draft pick (32nd overall) by Indianapolis, he played for three NFL teams in eight years and later went into coaching.
OV - 54:40
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And John Pankratz - Van guy / Simon Fraser - played 8 seasons for the Lions and put up close to 5000 career CFL yards; but listed at 5-10, 180 (? - don't remember him as that small ?), so him and Pathon = too much of a shrimp for the big army ? :roll:
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