The visuals are just too obvious to ignore.

In the same week the CFL and its players union started getting down to the bargaining nitty-gritty, Nathan Rourke was named this year's winner of the Jon Cornish Trophy as the outstanding Canadian in NCAA football.

The award is only two years old and the 20-year-old from Oakville has won it both times, although the trophy itself is newly-minted. Conceived of and presented by the Canadian Football Hall of Fame, it will rest in its ground-floor display case at Tim Hortons Field.

"It's a real honour," said Rourke, who led Ohio to a 9-4 record while passing for 2,434 yards and 23 touchdowns, with only eight interceptions, and running for another 860 yards and 15 touchdowns. "This award is growing. We had two guys nominated (Notre Dame receiver Chase Claypool and Oklahoma defensive lineman Neville Gallimore), who played in the College Football Playoff. That's just great exposure for football in our country."

Rourke is, repeat, a quarterback. And, repeat, Canadian. And two others of that breed, U Sports stars Chris Merchant of Western and Michael O'Connor of UBC will reap a lot of attention at next weekend's CFL national combine.

We don't know precisely how it can be done, but the league and union need to find a way to ensure that this latest class — and the younger ones inspired by it — does not age out before getting significant chances at CFL employment and development. Roster ratios are being discussed and this one seems like a short putt. Either create an extra spot of some form or, more practically, provide some roster-rule relief to teams which start a Canadian under centre.

"For us to have ample representation by Canadians in the league is very important," says Cornish, the B.C. native and Kansas grad who won three straight CFL rushing titles before retiring in 2015.

"The thing that has changed, though, is that Canadian players are starting to play in positions that weren't traditionally Canadian roles."

Cornish, Andrew Harris, Jerome Messam and Jesse Lumsden did that at featured back, which helped their teams elsewhere on the depth chart even before they ascended into transcendent-player status. But because of the current rules, there is no such extra roster sweetener in having a Canadian quarterback in uniform, no matter how good Brandon Bridge might become. There's your entry point, management and employees, so please walk through it.

The specifics of that discussion aren't really impactful to Rourke because he's ultra-focused on his upcoming senior year at Ohio (where his brother Kurtis just registered as a quarterback) and getting to the NFL after that. After leading Holy Trinity to a big 2014 OFSAA Bowl win at McMaster, he finished high school in Alabama, then went to junior college in Kansas to successfully get the NCAA Division 1 recruiting visits that weren't happening in Oakville.

"I've always wanted to play at the highest level which is why I wanted to play in Alabama and why I wanted to play in the NCAA and why I want to play in the NFL," said Rourke, who started in the sport with the Burlington Stampeders when he was seven and spent time being tutored by Larry Jusdanis, the last (23 years ago) Canadian quarterback to start a Tiger-Cats game.

Rourke went to CFL games at Rogers Centre and Ivor Wynne, and because he was born in B.C. has always been a Lions fan. He says, as a quarterback, he does "a little ad-libbing. I'm pretty mobile when asked to be, but what I really enjoy is sitting back there and spreading the ball around."

Sounds like a CFL portfolio. Is the northern league a possibility?

"Absolutely," he says. " Most players see the CFL as a vehicle to get to the NFL, and that would be my intention too But growing up watching the CFL, more than most people playing in America I have an appreciation for the league and the skill required here."

Cornish felt Andrew Buckley, his Canadian teammate in Calgary, had legitimate starting quarterback skills but feels there needs to be roster adjustments to allow Canadian pivots to and develop at the pro level.

"It would be sort of a wasted spot the way it stands now," he says.

Right.

So let's change the way it stands.

smilton@thespec.com

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