{"id":567722,"date":"2026-03-29T01:57:13","date_gmt":"2026-03-29T01:57:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/567722\/"},"modified":"2026-03-29T01:57:13","modified_gmt":"2026-03-29T01:57:13","slug":"5-toughest-matchups-at-the-2026-cfl-combine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/567722\/","title":{"rendered":"5 toughest matchups at the 2026 CFL Combine"},"content":{"rendered":"

EDMONTON \u2014 The CFL Combine presented by Anytime Fitness Canada is all about competition, and some players quickly earn a reputation as the ones you don\u2019t want to line up across from.<\/p>\n

Speaking with prospects throughout the week, CFL.ca gathered insight directly from those on the field, as players were quick to point out the opponents who pushed them the most. The responses not only highlighted standout individual performances, but also underscored the depth of talent across Canadian university football and beyond.<\/p>\n

Based on player and coach feedback from the field, here are five of the toughest matchups at this year\u2019s combine.<\/p>\n

\"\u00bb\"CFL COMBINE PRESENTED BY ANYTIME FITNESS
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\u00bb 3 standout performers that dominated CFL Combine testing day<\/a>
\u00bb Top 5 from every drill at 2026 CFL Combine<\/a><\/p>\n

NATHAN UDOH | RECEIVER | MANITOBA
\n\"\"<\/p>\n

Manitoba receiver Nathan Udoh earned praise from defensive backs after winning multiple competitive reps at the CFL Combine (Timothy Matwey\/CFL.ca)<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re a defensive back, Nathan Udoh is a problem.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have to shout him out,\u201d said Montreal defensive back Louis-Philippe Gauthier. \u201cWe had some really good battles. He got me a couple times, but that\u2019s part of the game.\u201d<\/p>\n

Udoh\u2019s ability to win reps and challenge coverage stood out against top defensive talent.<\/p>\n

LOUIS-PHILIPPE GAUTHIER | DEFENSIVE BACK | MONTREAL
\n\"\"<\/p>\n

Montreal defensive back Louis-Philippe Gauthier drew recognition from receivers for his speed and physical style of play (Timothy Matwey\/CFL.ca)<\/p>\n

Gauthier didn\u2019t just give praise, \u00a0he earned it too.<\/p>\n

UBC receiver Shemar McBean pointed to the 40-yard dash winner<\/a> as one of the toughest defensive backs he\u2019s faced.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s fast, he\u2019s physical. I like the way he plays,\u201d said McBean.<\/p>\n

Gauthier\u2019s mix of speed and physicality made him a constant presence in coverage.<\/p>\n

CARTER KETTYLE | RECEIVER | ALBERTA
\n\"\"<\/p>\n

Alberta receiver Carter Kettyle stood out on special teams, highlighted by a competitive rematch from the East-West Bowl (Timothy Matwey\/CFL.ca)<\/p>\n

Special teams reps can often be overlooked, but not when Carter Kettyle is involved.<\/p>\n

Gauthier highlighted Kettyle as one of his most challenging matchups of the day, pointing to a familiar battle.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe had a great battle on special teams,\u201d he said. \u201cIt was pretty great, kind of a rematch from the East-West Bowl. A bit of a get-back. It was great.\u201d<\/p>\n

That kind of impact in all phases adds serious value at the next level.<\/p>\n

JESULAYOMI OJUTALAYO | RECEIVER | WILFRID LAURIER
\n\"\"<\/p>\n

Wilfrid Laurier\u2019s Jesulayomi Ojutalayo impressed coaches with his versatility, hands and relentless competitiveness (Timothy Matwey\/CFL.ca)<\/p>\n

Versatility and effort make Jesulayomi Ojutalayo stand out.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s a complete athlete,\u201d said Ottawa linebacker\/defensive back and one the coaches\u2019 picks from day one<\/a>, Marc Rondeau. \u201cHe\u2019s got good hands and he competes. I like guys who compete.\u201d<\/p>\n

Players who can do multiple things, and do them well, are always tough to handle.<\/p>\n

STEVEN KPEHE | DEFENSIVE LINEMAN | QUEEN\u2019S
\n\"\"<\/p>\n

Queen\u2019s defensive lineman Steven Kpehe was identified by peers as a dominant presence in the trenches (Timothy Matwey\/CFL.ca)<\/p>\n

Dominance in the trenches never goes unnoticed.<\/p>\n

Queen\u2019s offensive lineman Niklas Henning (who was the other coaches\u2019 pick on Saturday<\/a>) made sure to spotlight Kpehe\u2019s performance.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s put in a ton of work. He looked dominant today,\u201d Henning said.<\/p>\n

When a defensive lineman is controlling reps, everyone on the field feels it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"EDMONTON \u2014 The CFL Combine presented by Anytime Fitness Canada is all about competition, and some players quickly…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":567723,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[437],"tags":[49,48,521,522,520,82],"class_list":["post-567722","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cfl","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-canadian-football-league","tag-canadianfootballleague","tag-cfl","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/567722","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=567722"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/567722\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/567723"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=567722"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=567722"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=567722"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}