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Winnipeg Free Press
01-05-2025
- Sport
- Winnipeg Free Press
Elgersma a step closer to chasing down his dream
Things just got a lot more real for Taylor Elgersma. The talented Canadian quarterback out of Wilfrid Laurier, fresh off a strong campaign with the Golden Hawks, took his first step towards fulfilling a lifelong dream of becoming a professional football player. The 23-year-old native of London, Ont., was selected by the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in the second round, 18th overall, in Tuesday's CFL draft. Elgersma was the first quarterback selected, going 18th overall. Curtis Rourke was plucked by the Saskatchewan Roughriders seven picks later in the third round. Butch Dill / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS FILES Blue Bombers draft pick Taylor Elgersma was named the 2024 winner of the Hec Creighton Trophy, and became the first quarterback from a Canadian university to participate in the NCAA Senior Bowl. Despite playing well in the NCAA Senior Bowl, Elgersma went unselected during last week's NFL draft. Despite this, he has still garnered interest south of the border, with mini-camps scheduled with Green Bay this week and Buffalo next. The expectation is that Elgersma will be headed to Bombers training camp next month. Regardless of what unfolds, he is excited to launch his professional football career and eager to play the game at the highest level, wherever that may lead. 'My dream has always been to be a professional quarterback. That's never been tied to a specific league,' Elgersma said Wednesday. 'I'm super fired up about the opportunity in Winnipeg. I'm confident in myself and I'm confident that I'm going to go down to these mini-camps and show the best that I can.' He added: 'I'm hopeful that will lead to a contract but I'm definitely excited to get to Winnipeg and get to work if those don't work out.' Scouts have described the six-foot-four, 235-pound Elgersma as a passionate player who plays with anger. His skillset, which includes a strong and accurate arm, has led many to believe he could become a CFL starter. In his senior season with the Golden Hawks, Elgersma passed for 4,252 yards and recorded 35 touchdowns, compared to 11 interceptions. He was named the winner of the Hec Creighton Trophy, awarded to the top U Sports football player. Few quarterbacks have transitioned from Canadian college to CFL starter, making Elgersma a potential exception to the rule. He has watched Tre Ford achieve a similar feat in Edmonton. Ford officially became the Elks' No. 1 quarterback this season — three years after being drafted the eighth overall pick in 2022. 'For me, the most important thing — and this is what I said to teams in interviews, too — is my first year is all about building trust with my offensive co-ordinator, building trust in my head coach and developing within a system,' he said. 'Coming to the pros, your goal is always to become the best version of yourself and the best player you can and that is, ultimately, to become a starter one day.' Elgersma added he wouldn't put a timeline on his progress. He understands he has a lot of work in front of him and while he feels well prepared for the CFL thanks to his coaches at Wilfrid Laurier, playing against other professionals will be a steep learning curve. During Elections Get campaign news, insight, analysis and commentary delivered to your inbox during Canada's 2025 election. Elgersma seemed excited at the prospect of working under Bombers starting QB Zach Collaros. Collaros is a three-time Grey Cup winner, including two in Winnipeg, where he was also named the league's Most Outstanding Player in back-to-back seasons in 2021 and 2022. Collaros will be 37 in August and has just one more season left on his contract. Despite coming off a down year with 17 touchdowns and 15 interceptions, he is planning a return to form. It's unclear how long Collaros expects to play, but Elgersma could be a potential succession plan. 'Zach is an unbelievable guy and a great leader,' said Elgersma, adding he had the chance to throw with Collaros in Ontario this off-season. 'You can see that with the success the Blue Bombers have had under centre. He's always trying to help guys out.' Jeff HamiltonMultimedia producer Jeff Hamilton is a sports and investigative reporter. Jeff joined the Free Press newsroom in April 2015, and has been covering the local sports scene since graduating from Carleton University's journalism program in 2012. Read more about Jeff. Every piece of reporting Jeff produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
Miami Herald
23-04-2025
- Sport
- Miami Herald
Miami Springs' baseball rides pitching and ‘small ball' approach to regional semifinals
Miami Springs' baseball team has had seasons where powerful hitters have paved the way to success. Big bats like Yasmani Grandal and current University of Alabama standout Jason Torres lifted the Golden Hawks to big wins in recent years. This year, the formula for Springs is pitching and 'small ball.' And it continues to work as the Golden Hawks did both very effectively this week to defeat iMater Prep by the score of 6-0 on consecutive days to secure a 2-0 series sweep of their Region 4-3A quarterfinal series at Shelly Dunkel Field. Senior Kevin Roque tossed his latest gem on Tuesday in the second game, striking out a season-high 10 and allowing one hit over six innings to lead the Golden Hawks (22-3), who will host Miami Monsignor Pace starting Monday in a best-of-3 regional semifinal series at Miami Springs. The first two games will be played Monday and Tuesday, each at 3:30 p.m. Should the series go to a third game, it will be played next Thursday at 7 at Monsignor Pace. It will be the first time the two teams meet since 2005. The Spartans clinched their quarterfinal series on Tuesday night as well, routing Fort Lauderdale Cardinal Gibbons 14-2 in five innings following a 3-0 win on Monday. The Golden Hawks are aiming to reach the state final four for the first time since 2019 and win their first state title in the sport. Roque improved to 10-1 for the season with a 1.45 ERA, 66 strikeouts and 20 walks in 58 innings this season. He and Magdiel Estevez (6-1, 1.35 ERA), who tossed a two-hitter and struck out 10 on Monday, have formed a potent 1-2 punch at the top of Springs' rotation. 'It's been the story of our year with the pitching,' Miami Springs coach David Fanshawe said. 'We have two guys that can throw well and others that can contribute.' The small ball came into play in the bottom of the fourth on Tuesday when Springs' Yordan Torres and Austin Argote each executed stellar bunts to load the bases after Darian Soto drew a walk to start the inning. iMater Prep starter Luis Hernandez, the son of former World Series MVP and Marlins pitcher Livan Hernandez who coaches the Knights, recovered with a strikeout and tagged out Soto at the plate when he tried to score on a wild pitch. But then Justin Mercado snuck a ground ball past the second baseman and into right field scoring two runs. In the fifth inning, Oscar Hernandez executed another perfect sacrifice bunt, setting up an RBI single by Soto. 'When I saw those four runs scored, I was so relaxed and didn't worry about anything. It felt amazing,' Roque said. 'They're just playing baseball the way it's supposed to be played. I love their aggressiveness. I love this team with all my heart. We're confident and I know we're going for states this year.' MORE RESULTS Region 4-3A quarterfinal - Game 2 - Monsignor Pace 14, Cardinal Gibbons 2 (5): The Spartans (17-11) fell behind 2-0 in the first inning to the defending Class 4A state champions on their home field on Tuesday. Pace followed with one of its highest-scoring innings ever in the postseason, plating 11 runs in the bottom half of the first to help it sweep the series. Robert Kramer led the barrage, going 3-for-3 with a home run, a double and two RBI to help the Spartans prompt the 10-run mercy rule. Yuniel Paredes went 3-for-4 with three RBI and Jordan Young went 2-for-3 with a double and three RBI. Rudy Marichal also went 1-for-3 with a two-run double and Ricky Hernandez went 1-for-3 with an RBI. Brenden Trujillo went 2-for-3 and Cam Rizzi went 1-for-1 with an RBI to lead Gibbons, which finished its season 11-16; Game 1 - Monsignor Pace 3, Cardinal Gibbons 0: Ricky Hernandez threw 6 1/3 shutout innings, allowing one hit, struck out seven and walked four. He also went 2-for-3 at the plate with a solo home run. Yuniel Paredes also went 2-for-2. Region 4-4A quarterfinal - Game 2 - American Heritage 4, Rockledge 3: Dylan Dubovik struck out 11 over 4 1/3 innings, walked five and allowed one earned run to lead the Patriots (23-6) to the series-clinching win at home on Tuesday. Dubovik also went 2-for-3 with an RBI while Joseph Castro, RJ Machado and Blayden Caballero each also had an RBI. Heritage will next host either Key West or Satellite on Monday and Tuesday in the first two games of a regional semifinals series; Game 1 - American Heritage 17, Rockledge 6: Dylan Dubovik went 3-for-5 with a home run and three RBI to lead Heritage. Sebastian Garavito and Machado each went 2-for-4 with three RBI. Castro also went 3-for-5 with two RBI and Caballero went 3-for-4 with an RBI. Region 4-4A quarterfinals - Game 1: Melbourne Eau Gallie 8, Belen 3; Game 2: Belen 7, Eau Gallie 6 (8); Game 3: at Belen, 7, Thursday. Region 4-3A quarterfinals - Game 2 - Killian 8, Pine Crest 7: The Cougars (13-13) jumped out to an early 5-1 lead and hung on to even the series with the host Panthers (15-7-2) after losing the first game 8-5. Jonathan Acosta went 2-for-3 with four RBI while Jahdon Heron went 2-for-4 with a solo home run. Killian will host the decisive third game on Thursday at 3:30. Region 4-3A quarterfinal - Game 2 - Calvary Christian 5, St. Brendan 1: Carlos Lugo tossed five shutout innings, allowing two hits and five walks, and struck out four to help the Eagles (15-10-3) even the series with the Sabres (16-12), who will host the decisive game on Thursday at 7 at St. Brendan. Chase Hamlett went 2-for-4 with two RBI and Preston Pielec went 2-for-2 with a solo home run to lead Calvary; Game 1 - St. Brendan 3, Calvary Christian 2: Luciano Nava and Giannicarlo Guzman-Garcia combined to allow two runs on four hits and strike out five batters each to lead the Sabres. Guzman-Garcia also went 2-for-4 and Rafael Rizzo went 3-for-4. Region 3-3A quarterfinals - Game 2 - North Broward Prep 4, Delray Heritage 3: Julian Rodriguez went 2-for-3 with two RBI to lead the reigning state champion Eagles (23-6) to the series-clinching win at home on Tuesday. North Broward Prep will next host Clearwater Central Catholic on Monday to begin a best-of-3 regional semifinal series. The Eagles have won state titles three of the past four seasons with the one exception being 2023 when they lost in the state final to Clearwater Calvary Christian; Game 1 - North Broward Prep 4, Delray American Heritage 3: Rodriguez went 2-for-3 with two RBI while Josiah Haslem went 3-for-3 with an RBI to help the Eagles rally for the win. Region 4-2A quarterfinals - Game 2 - Westminster Christian 13, Chaminade 1: A day after being shut out, the Warriors (17-11-1) broke through for six runs in the fifth and six more in the seventh to even the series with the host Lions (23-4). Max Boyer went 2-for-3 with a home run and four RBI to lead the outburst while Austin Weigandt went 2-for-5 with two RBI and Erik Eikenberg went 2-for-4 with two RBI; Game 1 - Chaminade 1, Westminster Christian 0: Spencer Krasner struck out nine over seven shutout innings and allowed only three hits and one walk to secure the win. Josh Andel drove in the lone run. The Lions will travel to Westminster Christian on Thursday at 4 for the decisive game. Region 4-2A quarterfinals - Game 2: Boca Raton St. John Paul II 5, True North 1; Game 1: True North 3, St. John Paul II 2; The Titans (18-8) will travel to Boca Raton to face St. John Paul II on Thursday 4 in the decisive game of the series. Region 4-2A quarterfinals - Game 1: Boca Raton St. Andrews 9, University School 8; Game 2: St. Andrews 9, University School 2. Region 4-1A quarterfinals - Game 2: Schoolhouse Prep 19, West Palm Beach Berean Christian 0: Rene Dun went 2-for-3 with four RBI. Jose Uzcategui went 1-for-2 with three RBI; Game 1: Schoolhouse 17, Berean 1: Schoolhouse advanced to the regional semifinals where it will host Brito beginning Monday afternoon. Region 4-1A quarterfinals - Game 2: Brito 9, Vero Beach Masters Academy 7: Hector Santos went 3-for-4 with four RBI to lead the Panthers (13-15) to the series-clinching win on Tuesday. Claudio De Los Santos went 1-for-3 with two RBI and pitched 4 ⅓ innings, allowing three runs and struck out two; Game 1 - Brito 10, Masters Academy 0: Raivon Pinder, Luis Diaz and Luis Amariz each had two RBI. Region 4-1A quarterfinals - Game 1: Miami Christian 10, Atlantic Christian 0; Game 2: Miami Christian 15, Atlantic Christian 0: The Victors (11-15) will host Jupiter Christian on Monday afternoon in Game 1 and Tuesday afternoon in Game 2. Should the series go to a third game, Jupiter Christian would host on May 1. Region 4-1A quarterfinals - Game 1: Jupiter Christian 10, Highlands Christian 0; Game 2: Jupiter Christian 11, Highlands Christian 0
New York Times
30-01-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
The QB prospect from up north: Canadian Taylor Elgersma makes history at Senior Bowl
MOBILE, Ala. — There are the gold helmets, so you know that guy played at Notre Dame. There are the distinct maize-and-blue Michigan, the crimson Alabama, the red with the 'G' signifying Georgia. All the usual and recognizable helmets worn by prospects at this week's Senior Bowl. Then there's the tall kid, the tallest of the seven quarterbacks. He's wearing a white helmet, foreign to American college football eyes because it is foreign. It marks Taylor Elgersma as one of the most intriguing players here. And it's groundbreaking for this all-star game. Advertisement Canada has exported plenty of players to American colleges. Among recent standouts are Kurtis Rourke, who quarterbacked Indiana to a College Football Playoff bid in 2024. Stanford receiver Elic Ayomanor was the ACC's sixth-leading receiver last season. John Metchie starred at receiver for Alabama from 2019-21. But they all played at American colleges. Elgersma attended the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks in Waterloo, Ontario. He is only the second Senior Bowl participant from a Canadian school, and the first quarterback, playing in a game that last year included Michael Penix Jr. and Bo Nix and this year has Riley Leonard, Dillon Gabriel, Jaxson Dart and Jalen Milroe. All household college football names, and into this walks Elgersma, playing 11-man football for the very first time. They play 12-man football in Canada. And Elgersma didn't even play that until a year into high school. 'He's not coming in here with unrealistic expectations. He knows he's an unknown commodity,' said Laurier offensive coordinator Todd Galloway, who is in Mobile with Elgersma this week. 'Talking with scouts and coaches he's really just telling them he hopes they take a chance on his upside.' Elgersma, like many a Canadian, grew up playing hockey. There being considerable competition in hockey, eventually Elgersma made a diversion. Or, as he put it, using his home terminology: 'I only got to football in Grade 10, and started playing quarterback.' The potential was evident, and by the end of Grade 12 he was ready to stay an extra year to showcase himself for American colleges, and do the Division I camp circuit. That's what Rourke, Metchie and others had done to get noticed. But Elgersma's plans were disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, and he stuck with his commitment to Laurier. The Golden Hawks have been a power in U Sports, the Canadian college athletics body that currently comprises 58 schools. Elgersma became the starter his sophomore season, and as a senior guided the team to an 8-0 regular-season record. The Golden Hawks made it to the championship game, where they lost. Advertisement Then it became time for Elgersma to pursue the NFL. He had already started last year, when he trained at QB Country, a Mobile-based outlet where many NFL and college quarterbacks have worked. One of Elgersma's coaches was impressed enough to recommend him to Jim Nagy, the Senior Bowl's executive director. This month has been a crash course in the American game for Elgersma, who was not only used to 12-man football but bigger fields, unlimited pre-snap motion, and of course a different level of speed, size and skill. He did two other, smaller all-star events: The College Gridiron Showcase game on Jan. 12 in Fort Worth, Texas, and the Tropical Bowl, played on Jan. 19 in Daytona Beach, Fla. This week has been the biggest and most high-profile test, with NFL scouts watching all of his throws. 'This is my first time taking 11-on-11 snaps. It's exciting for me to get that opportunity,' he said. 'I think I have the frame, I have the size for this level, I have the arm talent. So what it's all about for me is cleaning up my mechanics, cleaning up my footwork, continuing to improve and getting used to this American game.' The early buzz from scouts: Elgersma's inexperience shows. But he had a good practice on Wednesday, which is a positive sign. That's what NFL teams will be looking for, and it's what Elgersma showed in Canada. The more he learned the game, the better he got. 'He's the quickest study and the brightest quarterback I've ever had the privilege of coaching,' Galloway said. 'His path every year of getting better every year has been exponential. It's been great to see. … It's kind of been a meteoric rise. A tall, big-armed guy but he had a lot of work to do, and it's been fun to be on that journey to see how much better he got every year.' The only other player to get a Senior Bowl invite out of a Canadian school was Jordan Herdman-Reed, a linebacker from Simon Fraser, in 2017. He went undrafted and has never played in the NFL, though he has had a long career in the Canadian Football League. Advertisement But the Senior Bowl's success in producing quarterbacks is strong: Only two did not at least sign as undrafted free agents that year. Elgersma at least looks the part: feet 5 inches and 213 pounds, towering over Gabriel, one of his teammates this week. The Canadian was accurate in passes to the side and over the middle during Wednesday's practice, hitting Michigan's Donovan Edwards on a wheel route and Oklahoma State's Ollie Gordon on a short out. (Though he did also throw a ball right at a linebacker in a 7-on-7 drill.) Mike Kafka, the Cleveland Browns offensive coordinator who is coaching the Senior Bowl's 'National' team this week, seemed to sense Elgersma was overthinking it. He came up to him Wednesday and told him, 'Just play free.' Elgersma already knew he needed to avoid overthinking, but maybe it needed to be reiterated. 'I got the invite here for a reason. I know I can throw the ball with these guys,' Elgersma said. 'It's just about focusing on getting the little things right.' One of Elgersma's teammates on the National team, Iowa State receiver Jayden Higgins, said he hasn't seen any moments of confusion from the Canadian. 'He's picked up the playbook as good as anyone else,' he said. 'He know what he's doing out there.' As for his playing ability, the first impression Higgins had: 'He throws pretty hard. He throws with a lot of zip on the ball. I think it's awesome that a kid like that can come down here and show off his skill set.'
