The Winnipeg Blue Bombers agreed to terms with five CFL draft picks on Friday. They are defensive lineman Anthony Bennett (8th overall), wide receiver Jeremy Murphy (26th overall), linebacker Max Charbonneau (71st overall), and defensive backs Jake Kelly (15th overall), and Bret MacDougall (53rd overall).
Anthony Bennett is six foot three and weighs 230 pounds. The 26-year-old from Weston, Florida, made 38 tackles (22 solo, 16 assists), 12.5 tackles for loss, nine sacks, one interception for 28 yards, one touchdown, one pass breakup, and one fumble recovery in nine games for the Rams in 2022. He was named U SPORTS First-Team All-Canadian and Canada West All-Star in 2022.
Bennett played two seasons at the University of Regina (2021-22) with 63 tackles (39 solo, 24 assists), 20 tackles for loss, 11 sacks, one interception for 28 yards, one touchdown, two pass breakups, one forced fumble, and two fumble recoveries in 14 games.
Jeremy Murphy is six foot and weighs 195 pounds. The 23-year-old from St. Bruno, Quebec, made 29 catches for 589 yards, two touchdowns, and one carry for seven yards in seven games for the Stingers. He was named U SPORTS First All-Canadian team in 2022, the second national award of his collegiate career.
In 2021, Murphy played three games with 23 catches for 307 yards, and four touchdowns before tearing his hamstring and missed the rest of the season.
Murphy played three seasons at Concordia University (2019, 2021-22) with 86 catches for 1,387 yards, ten touchdowns, seven carries for 17 yards, three kick returns for 50 yards, and one punt return for one yard in 18 games.
Max Charbonneau is six foot three and weighs 225 pounds. The 23-year-old from Ottawa, Ontario, made 17 tackles (9 solo, 16 assists), one tackle for loss, one forced fumble, one pass breakup, and one blocked kick in six games for the Gee-Gees.
Charbonneau played four seasons at the University of Ottawa (2018-19, 2021-22) with 53.5 tackles (38 solo, 31 assists), one tackle for loss, two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, one pass breakup, and two blocked kicks in 28 games.
Jake Kelly is six foot and weighs 180 pounds. The 24-year-old from Markham, Ontario, made 24 tackles (19 solo, 5 assists), 0.5 tackles for loss, two interceptions for 52 yards, one touchdown, nine pass breakups, one forced fumble, and 11 punt returns for 80 yards in eight games for the Gaiters. He was named Defensive Player of the Year in 2022.
Kelly played four seasons at Bishop’s University (2018-19, 2022-23) with 60 tackles (50 solo, 10 assists), 1.5 tackles for loss, three interceptions for 138 yards, two touchdowns, 16 pass breakups, and one forced fumble in 25 games. He was named Academic All-Canadian in 2021.
Bret MacDougall is six foot three and weighs 205 pounds. The 21-year-old from LaSalle, Ontario, made 35 tackles (25 solo, 10 assists), two tackles for loss, two interceptions for six yards, five pass breakups, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery in nine games for the Lancers. He was named a 2022 U SPORTS Academic All-Canadian and participated in the 2022 East-West Bowl.
MacDougall played three seasons at the University of Windsor (2019, 2021-22) with 56 tackles (34 solo, 22 assists), three tackles for loss, four interceptions for 18 yards, seven pass breakups, one forced fumble, and three fumble recoveries in 19 games.
