Six current Western Mustangs players selected in 2016 CFL Draft

TORONTO – The Canadian Football League added a few more Mustangs on Tuesday night as six members of the current Western roster were selected in the 2016 CFL Canadian Draft. Sean Jamieson, George Johnson, Josh Woodman, Rupert Butcher, Jamal Kett, and Matt Uren all had their names called as they brought the number of Western players selected in the CFL Draft to 39 over the past 16 years.

Jamieson was the first Mustangs player off the board as the Montreal Alouettes selected him in the third round, 20th overall. The Alouettes didn’t wait long before adding another member of the purple and white, selecting George Johnson in the fourth round, 29th overall. The duo will join a Montreal roster that already features former Mustang Vaughn Martin, who will make his CFL debut this season.

A Winnipeg native, Jamieson is a two-time OUA First Team All-Star and CIS All-Canadian and was integral part of the Mustangs offensive line over the past four seasons. The 6-7 guard helped the Mustangs offence to a record-breaking season in 2015, establishing CIS milestones in points (494) and touchdowns (64), as well as an OUA record for rushing yards (2,947).

A CIS All-Canadian and two-time OUA All-Star, Johnson recorded 116 catches for 1,848 yards and eight touchdowns, while averaging 15.9 yards per catch in 27 regular season games. He hauled in 32 passes in 2015, racking up 540 yards and one touchdown in the regular season, before adding another 128 yards on 14 catches in the playoffs.

Woodman was the first Mustangs defender to hear his name called on Tuesday, going in the fifth round, 44th overall, to Edmonton.

Woodman emerged as one of the OUA’s top defensive backs over the past two seasons and has been a key part of the Mustangs defence. He’s recorded 53.5 tackles, 49 solo, in 18 regular season games while adding nine interceptions and breaking up eight passes. He continued to impress in postseason play, recording 11 solo tackles in six games.

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers added Rupert Butcher to their roster in the sixth round, selecting the defensive lineman 46th overall.

Standing at 6-5 and weighing in at more than 300 pounds, Butcher used his size to dominate throughout the entire season and earn himself an OUA All-Star nod. The London native recorded 22 total tackles – 15 solo – across 18 games, with 4.5 sacks. The postseason saw him add an additional 10.5 tackles and three sacks.

Butcher rounded out his best year as a Mustang by grabbing national attention at the CFL Combine. Noted as being nearly unblockable, he also proved to be light on his feet as he came out on top of the one-on-one competition.

The Ottawa Redblacks were the next team to add a member of the Mustangs roster, selecting Jamal Kett in the seventh round, 60th overall.

Joining the purple and white in 2015, Kett immediately became one of the top receivers on the roster in his debut season at Western. The 6-5 Social Science student saw the field in seven games, recording two touchdowns and 338 yards on 21 receptions.

Prior to suiting up for the Mustangs, Kett spent three seasons with NCAA Division II Simon Fraser. His introductory season ended with a Great Northwest Athletic Conference First-Team Conference Selection, and at the close of his time in Burnaby, Kett had totaled 1,004 yards and 10 touchdowns on 85 catches.

Rounding out the Mustangs players selected on Tuesday night was Matt Uren, who went in the eighth round, 67th overall, to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. Uren will join four other former Mustangs on the Ticats roster, including Beau Landry, Craig Butler, Andy Fantuz, and Ricky Osei-Kusi.

One of the most exciting players in recent Mustangs history, Uren helped the Mustangs to two undefeated regular seasons in 2013 and 2015, and earned the Dalt White Trophy as Yates Cup MVP in 2013. The London native led all Western players with 535 receiving yards in 2015, catching 35 passes and scoring four touchdowns.

The Mustangs were among 53 CIS players selected on Tuesday, including 25 from OUA teams. Western’s six selections rank first in the OUA and second in the CIS, trailing only the Laval Rouge et Or who had eight players selected.

NOTES: Shaquille Johnson, who began his CIS career with McGill in 2012 and played one season for Western in 2014 was selected by the BC Lions in the fourth round, 32nd overall…The six players selected represent Western’s highest total since 2000 when the Mustangs also had six players chosen. Western’s highest single year total for draft picks is nine, occurring in 1958, 1975, and 1983…