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![\"Ruth](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/3316703_web1_250605-92-Davis-2-.jpg\")
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Ruth Bonneville \/ Free Press Sports<\/p>\n
Zack Davis has only been playing football for three years, but his size and determination have impressed coaches from junior football to the CFL.<\/p>\n
He was previously an intimidating junior hockey defenceman before he made the switch to the gridiron game in 2023. Selected in the 10th round of the 2018 WHL Draft by the Swift Current Broncos, Davis suited up in the MJHL for the Steinbach Pistons and the Thunder Bay North Stars of the SIJHL.<\/p>\n
He loved hockey, and still does, but he left it behind to return home for family reasons.<\/p>\n
\u201cI came home, and at the time, I felt like I couldn\u2019t quit playing sports,\u201d said Davis. \u201cIf I wasn\u2019t going to play hockey, I had to play something else. So, I decided on football.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rifles head coach Geordie Wilson is thrilled he did. He heard about Davis through a mutual connection and the rest is history.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe walked in, and I was like \u2018Whoah, this kid is massive,\u2019\u201d said Wilson, recalling the first time he met Davis.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had him start training with our guys in the winter, and then as we went through our winter and spring on-field stuff, it was like \u2018Holy crap, man. This kid doesn\u2019t know what he\u2019s doing yet but once he gets coached up, he\u2019s going to be dynamite.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Relying solely on his athleticism and physicality, Davis finished the 2023 campaign with the Rifles with three quarterback sacks, 18 total tackles, and a blocked kick.<\/p>\n
Wilson believed if Davis could get better at the technique side of things the sky would be the limit for the young prospect. So, he called Bombers general manager Kyle Walters and head coach Mike O\u2019Shea to schedule an in-person meeting.<\/p>\n
\u201cI bring him down, we\u2019re sitting in Kyle\u2019s office, and O\u2019Shea walks in and goes \u2018Holy Mackerel, this kid has a huge head.\u2019 He was joking around, and then wanted to talk him about his whole hockey career so they went off for about half an hour jabbering away. And I was talking to Kyle about him and said \u2018Look, this kid is as green as grass, but if we can get him into camp with you guys, learns some skills then plays with us, in a couple years, I think this kid could play in the CFL,\u2019\u201d said Wilson.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey were obviously impressed.\u201d<\/p>\n
An injury cost Davis his 2024 season with the Rifles, but he rejoined the Bombers at this year\u2019s camp.<\/p>\n
\u201cHis progression from when he first started with us to now is phenomenal and just terrific. I couldn\u2019t be happier for him,\u201d said O\u2019Shea.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think he\u2019s having fun doing it, I think he understands it better. I mean, his pass rush skills from this year to last year have gone through the roof. I\u2019m really pleased for Zack, he\u2019s an awesome teammate and a good guy all around.\u201d<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t get it twisted, O\u2019Shea made it clear that Rifles aren\u2019t welcomed just as a way to help develop the local football community.<\/p>\n
\u201cI hope they get to a point where they are CFL football players. That\u2019s what I hope,\u201d said O\u2019Shea.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt doesn\u2019t matter if you\u2019re a Rifle or if you\u2019ve come from whatever the best school is in the NCAA\u2026 You\u2019re gonna learn stuff from all the vets\u2026 So, it doesn\u2019t matter if you come from the Rifles or not, you better be learning from all those guys and I hope for all of them that they realize their dream.\u201d<\/p>\n
Unlike last year, Davis saw action in both preseason contests this time around and managed to stick out with a few tackles.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is so special to be out here. As a Winnipeg kid, I always looked at the stadium and the players and they were a huge role model for me and a lot of Winnipeg, too,\u201d said Davis.<\/p>\n
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\u201cNow, getting to learn from guys like Willie Jefferson and Jake Thomas, they\u2019re so special because they\u2019ve been in the league for so long. So, any small things or big things that they tell me, I\u2019m a sponge towards them.\u201d<\/p>\n
As unorthodox as his journey may be, he might one day soon find himself with a professional contract. If he continues to play for the Rifles, the Bombers will automatically own his rights.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s got a good story and there\u2019s some good things coming ahead for that young fella, for sure,\u201d said Wilson.<\/p>\n
The Bombers are on a Week 1 bye and will open the season June 12 at home against the B.C. Lions.<\/p>\n
taylor.allen@freepress.mb.ca<\/p>\n
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Taylor Allen Taylor Allen is a sports reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press. Taylor was the Vince Leah intern in the Free Press newsroom twice while earning his joint communications degree\/diploma at the University of Winnipeg and Red River College Polytechnic. He signed on full-time in 2019 and mainly covers the Blue Bombers, curling, and basketball. Read more about Taylor<\/a>.<\/p>\n Every piece of reporting Taylor produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print \u2014 part of the Free Press\u2018s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press\u2019s history and mandate<\/a>, and learn how our newsroom operates<\/a>.<\/p>\n
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