Rams Look to Have Roster Finalized in Week’s Time

By Greg Urbanoski

The University of Regina Rams are looking at having a better idea of what their 2007 roster will look like in approximately one week.  

A week after Rams player Chris Bauman was taken first overall in the Canadian Football League college draft and was joined by Chris Getzlaf and Ryan Ackerman, the Rams are waiting to see if any more of their players will be signed to training camp contracts by other CFL teams.  

“Right now we’ve got the roster down to about 70 players and there are a couple of players with whom we still need to close the deal with,” said Rams Head Coach Frank McCrystal.  

“I hope in the next four to five days we will have our roster finalized. We are also in the process now of talking to some of our veteran players to let them know where they stand. If a young player is going to take an old guy’s spot on the traveling squad, then some of these veterans may want to rethink their situation and we want to be fair to them and let them know about that.”  

The prospect of CFL teams signing more Rams players to free-agent contracts is also a factor McCrystal is considering in roster finalizations. Steve Wilson has just signed a contract with the Calgary Stampeders and will be going to their training camp.  

“We’ve got some players who have an excellent chance of playing in the CFL,” said McCrystal.  

“We’re not going to get Bauman back from Hamilton and I think Getzlaf is going to have an excellent chance of playing. We expect to get Ackerman back from the Riders and I don’t know about Wilson . Other guys we think can compete for spots in the CFL are Steve Ryan and Joel Lipinski, but there are only eight teams in the CFL and only so many spots for Canadians.”  

McCrystal said the Rams were impressed with the performance of players from the first Rams Open Try-Out Camp held in April. The five players who were invited from that camp performed well, and the Rams will continue to hold those camps in search of the diamond in the rough.  

“Those guys did OK, they did not look out of place,” said McCrystal. “If we were the type of team that keeps more players, they could probably make it on. It was tough for two of them because the receiver spot we have a lot of talent and the defensive line is tough for anyone who doesn’t have the size.”

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