# 2023 CFL draft

The 2023 CFL national draft was a selection of national players by Canadian Football League teams that took place on May 2, 2023, at 8:00 pm ET. 72 players were chosen from among eligible players from Canadian Universities across the country, as well as Canadian players playing in the NCAA and NAIA.
The draft was broadcast live on TSN for the first two rounds with subsequent rounds being streamed online. The TSN production was hosted by Farhan Lalji and featured the CFL on TSN panel, including Duane Forde, Marshall Ferguson, Jim Barker, and Dave Naylor.

## Combines

For the first time the CFL held an invitational players combine at the University of Waterloo's Feridun Hamdullahpur Field House on March 3, 2023. The main combine took place March 22-26, 2023, at the Commonwealth Stadium Field House in Edmonton, AB.

## Top prospects

    Source: CFL Scouting Bureau rankings.
| Final ranking | January ranking | September ranking | Player | Position | University | Hometown |
| 1 | 5 | – | Matthew Bergeron | Offensive Lineman | Syracuse | Victoriaville, QC |
| 2 | 1 | 1 | Chase Brown | Running back | Illinois | London, ON |
| 3 | 2 | 3 | Sydney Brown | Defensive back | Illinois | London, ON |
| 4 | 3 | 9 | Tavius Robinson | Defensive lineman | Mississippi | Guelph, ON |
| 5 | 4 | 7 | Sidy Sow | Offensive lineman | Eastern Michigan | Bromont, QC |
| 6 | 6 | 4 | Jared Wayne | Wide receiver | Pittsburgh | Peterborough, ON |
| 7 | 7 | 2 | Dontae Bull | Offensive lineman | Fresno State | Victoria, BC |
| 8 | 9 | 10 | Jonathan Sutherland | Linebacker | Penn State | Ottawa, ON |
| 9 | 8 | 6 | Lwal Uguak | Defensive lineman | Texas Christian | Edmonton, AB |
| 10 | 12 | 11 | Francis Bemiy | Defensive lineman | Southern Utah | Montreal, QC |
| 11 | 15 | – | Micheal Brodrique | Linebacker | Montreal | Sainte-Marthe-sur-le-Lac, QC |
| 12 | – | – | Cole Tucker | Wide receiver | Northern Illinois | DeKalb, IL |
| 13 | 10 | 20 | Lake Korte-Moore | Defensive lineman | British Columbia | Ottawa, ON |
| 14 | 14 | 13 | Clark Barnes | Wide receiver | Guelph | Brampton, ON |
| 15 | 11 | 16 | Siriman Bagayogo | Defensive back | Guelph | Bois-des-Filion, QC |
| 16 | 13 | – | Anthony Bennett | Defensive lineman | Regina | Weston, FL |
| 17 | 20 | – | Phillip Grohovac | Offensive lineman | Western | Victoria, BC |
| 18 | 18 | 18 | Jacob Taylor | Linebacker | Alberta | Beaumont, AB |
| 19 | 16 | – | James Peter | Linebacker | Ottawa | Ottawa, ON |
| 20 | – | – | Dayton Black | Offensive lineman | Saskatchewan | Brandon, MB |
| – | 17 | 19 | Reece Martin | Defensive lineman | Mount Allison | Moncton, NB |
| – | 19 | – | Quintin Seguin | Defensive lineman | Charleston Southern | Windsor, ON |
| – | – | 5 | Nick Mardner | Wide receiver | Cincinnati | Mississauga, ON |
| – | – | 8 | Theo Benedet | Offensive lineman | British Columbia | North Vancouver, BC |
| – | – | 12 | Gabe Wallace | Offensive lineman | Buffalo | Salmon Arm, BC |
| – | – | 14 | Daniel Johnson | Offensive lineman | Purdue | London, ON |
| – | – | 15 | Giovanni Manu | Offensive lineman | British Columbia | Pitt Meadows, BC |
| – | – | 17 | Justin Sambu | Defensive lineman | Maine | Calgary, AB |

## Draft order
### Round one

| Pick # | CFL Team | Player | Position | University |
| 1 | Ottawa Redblacks | Dontae Bull | OL | Fresno State |
| 2 | Edmonton Elks | Michael Brodrique | LB | Montreal |
| 3 | Saskatchewan Roughriders | Lake Korte-Moore | DL | British Columbia |
| 4 | Calgary Stampeders (via Hamilton) | Cole Tucker | WR | Northern Illinois |
| 5 | Montreal Alouettes | Jonathan Sutherland | LB | Penn State |
| 6 | Hamilton Tiger-Cats (via Calgary) | Dayton Black | OL | Saskatchewan |
| 7 | Montreal Alouettes (via BC) | Lwal Uguak | DL | Texas Christian |
| 8 | Winnipeg Blue Bombers | Anthony Bennett | DL | Regina |
| 9 | BC Lions (via Toronto) | Francis Bemiy | DL | Southern Utah |

### Round two

| Pick # | CFL Team | Player | Position | University |
| 10 | Ottawa Redblacks | Lucas Cormier | DB | Mount Allison |
| – | Edmonton Elks | Selection forfeited | Selection forfeited | Selection forfeited |
| 11 | Saskatchewan Roughriders | Jaxon Ford | DB | Regina |
| 12 | Ottawa Redblacks (via Edmonton via Hamilton) | James Peter | LB | Ottawa |
| 13 | Montreal Alouettes | David Dallaire | FB | Laval |
| – | Calgary Stampeders | Selection forfeited | Selection forfeited | Selection forfeited |
| 14 | BC Lions | Siriman Bagayogo | DB | Guelph |
| 15 | Winnipeg Blue Bombers | Jake Kelly | DB | Bishop's |
| 16 | Toronto Argonauts | Jared Wayne | WR | Pittsburgh |
| 17T | Ottawa Redblacks | Daniel Oladejo | WR | Ottawa |
| 18T | Edmonton Elks | Jacob Taylor | LB | Alberta |

### Round three

| Pick # | CFL Team | Player | Position | University |
| 19 | Ottawa Redblacks | Aidan John | DL | St. Mary's |
| 20 | Edmonton Elks | Phillip Grohovac | OL | Western Ontario |
| 21 | Saskatchewan Roughriders | Matt Dean | LB | York |
| 22 | Calgary Stampeders (via Hamilton) | Kwadwo Boahen | DL | Alberta |
| 23 | Edmonton Elks (via Montreal) | Luke Burton-Krahn | DB | British Columbia |
| 24 | Calgary Stampeders | Clark Barnes | WR | Guelph |
| 25 | Ottawa Redblacks (via BC) | Josh White | LB | Regina |
| 26 | Winnipeg Blue Bombers | Jeremy Murphy | WR | Concordia (QC) |
| 27 | Toronto Argonauts | Adam Guillemette | LS | Holy Cross |

### Round four

| Pick # | CFL Team | Player | Position | University |
| 28 | Edmonton Elks (via Ottawa) | Noah Curtis | DL | Keiser |
| 29 | Hamilton Tiger-Cats (via Edmonton ) | Patrick Burke Jr. | DB | Wilfrid Laurier |
| 30 | Saskatchewan Roughriders | Thomas Bertrand-Hudon | RB | Delaware State |
| 31 | Hamilton Tiger-Cats | Reece Martin | DL | Mount Allison |
| 32 | Montreal Alouettes | Theo Grant | OL | Queen's |
| 33 | Calgary Stampeders | Alexandre Marcoux | OL | McGill |
| 34 | BC Lions | Markcus Jean-Loescher | DL | St. Mary's |
| 35 | Winnipeg Blue Bombers | Tanner Schmekel | DL | Regina |
| 36 | Toronto Argonauts | Spencer Nichols | RB | Western Ontario |

### Round five

| Pick # | CFL Team | Player | Position | University |
| 37 | Ottawa Redblacks | Daniel Perry | WR | Saskatchewan |
| 38 | Edmonton Elks | Bertrand Beaulieu | RB | Montreal |
| 39 | Montreal Alouettes (via Saskatchewan) | Jacob Mason | FB | McMaster |
| 40 | Hamilton Tiger-Cats | Robert Panabaker | DB | Western Ontario |
| 41 | Montreal Alouettes | Shedler Fervius | WR | St. Mary's |
| 42 | Calgary Stampeders | Ryan Leder | DL | McMaster |
| 43 | BC Lions | Charlie Ringland | DB | Saskatchewan |
| 44 | Winnipeg Blue Bombers | Collin Kornelson | DL | Manitoba |
| 45 | Toronto Argonauts | Edouard Paradis | OL | Houston Christian |

### Round six

| Pick # | CFL Team | Player | Position | University |
| 46 | Ottawa Redblacks | Quintin Seguin | DL | Charleston Southern |
| 47 | Toronto Argonauts (via Edmonton) | Richard Burton | WR | Queen's |
| 48 | Saskatchewan Roughriders | Sidy Sow | OL | Eastern Michigan |
| 49 | Calgary Stampeders (via Hamilton) | Sebastian Howard | TE | St. Mary's |
| 50 | Edmonton Elks (via Montreal) | Spencer Masterson | OL | Guelph |
| 51 | Calgary Stampeders | Campbell Fair | K | Ottawa |
| 52 | BC Lions | Jassin States-McClean | DB | St. Mary's |
| 53 | Winnipeg Blue Bombers | Breton MacDougall | DB | Windsor |
| 54 | Toronto Argonauts | Ife Onyemenam | LB | Wilfrid Laurier |

### Round seven

| Pick # | CFL Team | Player | Position | University |
| 55 | Ottawa Redblacks | Alexander Fedchun | DL | St. Francis Xavier |
| 56 | Edmonton Elks | Bruno Legace | DE | Montreal |
| 57 | Saskatchewan Roughriders | Evan Floren | OL | Queen's |
| 58 | Ottawa Redblacks (via Edmonton via Hamilton) | Amlicar Polk | RB | Ottawa |
| 59 | Montreal Alouettes | Chase Brown | RB | Illinois |
| 60 | Saskatchewan Roughriders (via Calgary) | Nick Thomas | LB | Manitoba |
| 61 | BC Lions | Jack Hinsperger | LB | Waterloo |
| 62 | Winnipeg Blue Bombers | Jonathan Rosery | RB | Alberta |
| 63 | Toronto Argonauts | Brendan Murphy | DB | Western Ontario |

### Round eight

| Pick # | CFL Team | Player | Position | University |
| 64 | Hamilton Tiger-Cats (via Edmonton via Ottawa) | Josh Hyer | DL | Calgary |
| 65 | Edmonton Elks | Derek Best | RB | Western Ontario |
| 66 | Saskatchewan Roughriders | Tavius Robinson | DL | Mississippi |
| 67 | Hamilton Tiger-Cats | Caleb Morin | WR | Saskatchewan |
| 68 | Montreal Alouettes | Maxym Lavallee | DB | Laval |
| 69 | Calgary Stampeders | Lucas Robertson | FB | British Columbia |
| 70 | BC Lions | Troy Kowal | OL | Minot State |
| 71 | Winnipeg Blue Bombers | Max Charbonneau | LB | Ottawa |
| 72 | Toronto Argonauts | Anthony Vandal | OL | Sherbrooke |

## Trades

In the explanations below, (D) denotes trades that took place during the draft, while (PD) indicates trades completed pre-draft.

### Round one

* Hamilton ←→ Calgary (PD). Hamilton traded this selection, a third-round pick in this draft, a sixth-round pick in this draft, and a second-round pick in the 2024 CFL Draft to Calgary in exchange for Bo Levi Mitchell, a first-round pick in this draft, and a third-round pick in the 2024 CFL Draft.
* BC → Montreal (PD). BC traded this selection to Montreal in exchange for Vernon Adams.
* Toronto → BC (PD). Toronto traded this selection to BC in exchange for Jordan Williams.

### Round two

* Hamilton → Edmonton (PD). Hamilton traded this selection and Jesse Gibbon to Edmonton in exchange for David Beard and a conditional fourth-round pick in this year's draft.
* Edmonton → Ottawa (PD). Edmonton traded the 12th overall selection to Ottawa in exchange for the rights to Woodly Appolon.

### Round three

* Montreal → Edmonton (PD). Montreal traded this selection and Avery Ellis to Edmonton in exchange for Nafees Lyon and Thomas Costigan.
* BC → Ottawa (PD). BC traded this selection and a conditional fourth-round selection in the 2024 CFL Draft to Ottawa in exchange for Terry Williams.
* Hamilton → Calgary (PD). Hamilton traded this selection, a first-round pick in this draft, a sixth-round pick in this draft, and a second-round pick in the 2024 CFL Draft to Calgary in exchange for Bo Levi Mitchell, a first-round pick in this draft, and a third-round pick in the 2024 CFL Draft.

### Round four

* Ottawa → Edmonton (PD). Ottawa traded this selection to Edmonton in exchange for Nick Arbuckle.
* Edmonton → Hamilton (PD). Edmonton traded a conditional fourth-round selection and David Beard to Hamilton in exchange for Jesse Gibbon and a second-round pick in this year's draft. The condition was confirmed to be fulfilled upon the release of the draft order by the league.

### Round five

* Saskatchewan → Montreal (PD). Saskatchewan traded this selection to Montreal in exchange for Mario Alford. This selection was originally a sixth-round pick, but was upgraded after Alford played in at least nine games for the Roughriders.

### Round six

* Edmonton → Toronto (PD). Edmonton traded this selection to Toronto in exchange for Jalen Collins and Martez Ivey.
* Montreal → Edmonton (PD). Montreal traded this selection to Edmonton in exchange for Walter Fletcher.
* Hamilton → Calgary (PD). Hamilton traded this selection, a first-round pick in this draft, a third-round pick in this draft, and a second-round pick in the 2024 CFL Draft to Calgary in exchange for Bo Levi Mitchell, a first-round pick in this draft, and a third-round pick in the 2024 CFL Draft.

### Round seven

* Calgary → Saskatchewan (PD). Calgary traded this selection and a third-round selection in the 2023 CFL global draft to Saskatchewan in exchange for James Smith. This selection can be upgraded to a fifth-round selection depending on the number of games played by Smith for the Stampeders.
* Hamilton → Edmonton (PD). Hamilton traded this selection to Edmonton in exchange for Colin Kelly.
* Edmonton → Ottawa (PD). Edmonton traded this selection to Ottawa in exchange for Llevi Noel and an eighth-round pick in this year's draft.

### Round eight

* Ottawa → Edmonton (PD). Ottawa traded this selection and Llevi Noel to Edmonton in exchange for a seventh-round pick in this year's draft.
* Edmonton → Hamilton (PD). Edmonton traded this selection to Hamilton in exchange for Jon Ryan.

### Conditional trades

* Montreal → Calgary (PD). Montreal traded a conditional second-round selection to Calgary in exchange for the playing rights to Laurent Duvernay-Tardif. The condition would've been fulfilled if Duvernay-Tardif signed with the Alouettes before the draft, but he did not.

## Forfeitures

* Edmonton forfeited their second round pick after selecting J-Min Pelley in the 2022 Supplemental Draft.
* Calgary forfeited their second round pick after selecting T. J. Rayam in the 2022 Supplemental Draft.