# List of first overall CFL draft picks

This is a list of first overall Canadian Football League draft picks. The CFL Draft is an annual sports draft in which the teams of the Canadian Football League (CFL) select eligible Canadian/non-import players, typically from the ranks of U Sports football or NCAA college football. The first official draft took place in 1953, with Doug McNichol becoming the first player to be drafted and was therefore drafted first overall. This list does not include the 1952 IRFU college draft due to its unofficial status. While only the eastern teams participated for the first three years, all nine teams began participating in the 1956 draft. From 1960 to 1962, however, due to a dispute over talent from western universities and a reluctance of eastern draftees to move west, BC, Edmonton, Saskatchewan, and Winnipeg were awarded territorial rights to players from their city's university. Because Calgary had no university program in their territory, they continued to participate in the draft during these three years. From 1973 to 1984, teams were granted territorial rights players before the actual draft took place, hence, players listed in those years were actually drafted later. Since 2016, in non-pandemic years, the draft has consisted of eight rounds, with teams selecting in reverse order of their placement in the previous season.

## List of first overall picks

| = CFL Division All-Star | = CFL All-Star | = Hall of Famer |

### Eastern draft

| Year | Player | Position | College | IRFU team |
| 1953 | Doug McNichol | End | Western Ontario | Montreal Alouettes |
| 1954 | Bill McFarlane | Halfback | Toronto | Toronto Argonauts |
| 1955 | Gino Fracas | Halfback | Western Ontario | Ottawa Rough Riders |

### National draft

| Year | Player | Position | College | CFL team |
| 1956 | Lou Bruce | End | Queen's | Ottawa Rough Riders |
| 1957 | Jim Hughes | Tackle | Queen's | BC Lions |
| 1958 | Len Sigurdson | Tackle | McGill | Saskatchewan Roughriders |
| 1959 | Lorry Stacey | Defensive end | Toronto | Toronto Argonauts |
| 1960 | Bill Mitchell | Tackle | Western Ontario | Toronto Argonauts |
| 1961 | Casey Wood | Tackle | Toronto | Toronto Argonauts |
| 1962 | Harvey Scott | Guard | Western Ontario | Calgary Stampeders |
| 1963 | John Wydareny | Defensive back | Western Ontario | Toronto Argonauts |
| 1964 | Barry Mitchelson | End | Western Ontario | Edmonton Eskimos |
| 1965 | Jim Young | Wide receiver | Queen's | Toronto Argonauts |
| 1966 | Ed Turek | Halfback | Waterloo Lutheran | Edmonton Eskimos |
| 1967 | Lawrence Barrett | Halfback | British Columbia | Toronto Argonauts |
| 1968 | Mike Eben | Wide receiver | Toronto | BC Lions |
| 1969 | Doug Strong | Halfback | Waterloo Lutheran | Winnipeg Blue Bombers |
| 1970 | Wayne Holm | Quarterback | Simon Fraser | Calgary Stampeders |
| 1971 | Brian Donnelly | Defensive back | Simon Fraser | Saskatchewan Roughriders |
| 1972 | Larry Smith | Running back | Bishop's | Montreal Alouettes |
| 1973 | Brian Sopatyk | Offensive guard | Boise State | BC Lions |
| 1974 | Randy Halsall | Offensive tackle | Wake Forest | Toronto Argonauts |
| 1975 | Steve Scully | Offensive tackle | Syracuse | Winnipeg Blue Bombers |
| 1976 | Tim Berryman | Linebacker | Ottawa | Edmonton Eskimos |
| 1977 | Mike Riley | Defensive tackle | Dalhousie | Ottawa Rough Riders |
| 1978 | Dave Kirzinger | Defensive tackle | Ottawa | Calgary Stampeders |
| 1979 | Kevin Powell | Offensive tackle | Utah State | Toronto Argonauts |
| 1980 | Greg Barrow | Offensive lineman | Florida | Toronto Argonauts |
| 1981 | Frank Cosec | Linebacker | Waterloo | Calgary Stampeders |
| 1982 | Mike Kirkley | Running back | Western Ontario | Toronto Argonauts |
| 1983 | Jerry Dobrovolny | Offensive tackle | British Columbia | Calgary Stampeders |
| 1984 | Frank Balkovec | Linebacker | Toronto | BC Lions |

### Modern era

| Year | Player | Position | College | CFL team |
| 1985 | Nicholas Benjamin | Offensive lineman | Concordia | Ottawa Rough Riders |
| 1986 | Kent Warnock | Defensive end | Calgary | Calgary Stampeders |
| 1987 | Leo Groenewegen | Offensive lineman | British Columbia | Ottawa Rough Riders |
| 1988 | Orville Lee | Running back | Simon Fraser | Ottawa Rough Riders |
| 1989 | Gerald Wilcox | Tight end | Weber State | Ottawa Rough Riders |
| 1990 | Sean Millington | Running back | Simon Fraser | Edmonton Eskimos |
| 1991 | Nick Mazzoli | Wide receiver | Simon Fraser | Hamilton Tiger-Cats |
| 1992 | Bruce Covernton | Offensive tackle | Weber State | Calgary Stampeders |
| 1993 | Patrick Burke | Defensive back | Fresno College | BC Lions |
| 1994 | Val St. Germain | Offensive lineman | McGill | Hamilton Tiger-Cats |
| 1995 | Tom Nütten | Offensive lineman | Western Michigan | Hamilton Tiger-Cats |
| 1996 | Don Blair | Slotback | Calgary | Edmonton Eskimos |
| 1997 | Chad Folk | Offensive lineman | Utah | Toronto Argonauts |
| 1998 | Tim Fleiszer | Defensive lineman | Harvard | Hamilton Tiger-Cats |
| 1999 | Rob Meier | Defensive end | Washington State | BC Lions |
| 2000 | Tyson St. James | Linebacker | British Columbia | Saskatchewan Roughriders |
| 2001 | Scott Schultz | Defensive lineman | North Dakota | Saskatchewan Roughriders |
| 2002 | Alexandre Gauthier | Offensive lineman | Laval | Ottawa Renegades |
| 2003 | Steve Morley | Offensive lineman | Saint Mary's | Calgary Stampeders |
| 2004 | Wayne Smith | Offensive lineman | Appalachian State | Hamilton Tiger-Cats |
| 2005 | Miguel Robede | Defensive end | Laval | Calgary Stampeders |
| 2006 | Adam Braidwood | Defensive end | Washington State | Edmonton Eskimos |
| 2007 | Chris Bauman | Wide receiver | Regina | Hamilton Tiger-Cats |
| 2008 | Dylan Barker | Defensive back | Saskatchewan | Hamilton Tiger-Cats |
| 2009 | Simeon Rottier | Offensive lineman | Alberta | Hamilton Tiger-Cats |
| 2010 | Shomari Williams | Linebacker | Queen's | Saskatchewan Roughriders |
| 2011 | Henoc Muamba | Linebacker | St. Francis Xavier | Winnipeg Blue Bombers |
| 2012 | Ben Heenan | Offensive lineman | Saskatchewan | Saskatchewan Roughriders |
| 2013 | Linden Gaydosh | Defensive lineman | Calgary | Hamilton Tiger-Cats |
| 2014 | Pierre Lavertu | Offensive lineman | Laval | Calgary Stampeders |
| 2015 | Alex Mateas | Offensive lineman | UConn | Ottawa Redblacks |
| 2016 | Josiah St. John | Offensive lineman | Oklahoma | Saskatchewan Roughriders |
| 2017 | Faith Ekakitie | Defensive lineman | Iowa | Winnipeg Blue Bombers |
| 2018 | Mark Chapman | Wide receiver | Central Michigan | Hamilton Tiger-Cats |
| 2019 | Shane Richards | Offensive lineman | Oklahoma State | Toronto Argonauts |
| 2020 | Jordan Williams | Linebacker | East Carolina | BC Lions |
| 2021 | Jake Burt | Tight end | Boston College | Hamilton Tiger-Cats |
| 2022 | Tyrell Richards | Linebacker | Syracuse | Montreal Alouettes |
| 2023 | Dontae Bull | Offensive lineman | Fresno State | Ottawa Redblacks |
| 2024 | Joel Dublanko | Linebacker | Cincinnati | Edmonton Elks |

### Foreign drafts

| Year | Player | Position | Team drafted from (College or professional) | CFL team |
| 2019 Mexican | Diego Viamontes | Wide receiver | Mayas CDMX | Edmonton Eskimos |
| 2019 European | Valentin Gnahoua | Defensive lineman | Berlin Rebels | Hamilton Tiger-Cats |
| 2021 Global | Jake Ford | Punter | Ouachita Baptist | BC Lions |
| 2022 Global | Kingsley Jonathan | Defensive end | Syracuse | Montreal Alouettes |
| 2023 Global | Blessman Ta’ala | Defensive lineman | Hawaii | Ottawa Redblacks |
| 2024 Global | Eteva Mauga-Clements | Linebacker | Nebraska | Edmonton Elks |

## Statistics

* Since 1956, Simon Fraser University and the University of Western Ontario hold the record for most first overall picks with five apiece. Among NCAA schools, the only ones with more than one first overall pick are Washington State University and Weber State University, each with two. (Although Simon Fraser is now an NCAA member, it has not had a top overall pick since joining that body.)
* Since 1956, the Toronto Argonauts have had the most first overall picks with 11.
* The Montreal Alouettes have gone the longest without a first overall draft pick, after selecting first in 1972 and then waiting until 2022 before picking first again. The Alouettes have also had the fewest first overall selections with three.
* Only two first overall draft selections have been awarded the CFL's Most Outstanding Rookie since the award was created in 1972; Orville Lee in 1988 and Jordan Williams in 2021.
* No team has ever made the first overall draft pick for more than three straight years.