TORONTO – Late Saturday night, while the prospects should have been snug in their beds at the Park Hyatt hotel, one scout put it best about the final day of the CFL combine.

“Tomorrow is big, because it's so tight among the guys who are here,” he said.

Some players delivered on Sunday at the University of Toronto's Varsity Centre, while others took steps back under the bubble. Where a player ultimately gets drafted will largely rely on his game film, but how he performs in the one-on-ones can still change a few minds. That was especially more truthful this year, given there is no clear No. 1 choice.

One player who shot up draft boards all over the place was Acadia receiver Brian Jones, the 18th ranked prospect on the current CFL Scouting Bureau list who should expect to be a lot higher when the April one is released.

The 6-foot-4, 233-pound behemoth ran a 4.69 in the 40, had 24 reps on the bench and absolutely blew up a poor defensive back as a promise to Argos head coach Scott Milanovich.

“I mentioned to one coach that I would do that,” Jones said. “So I'm a man of my word.”

Jones also caught every ball thrown his way on Sunday, which is the No. 1 trait coaches are looking for in a receiver. He believes he's been as good as everyone saw on Sunday, but playing in the Atlantic conference likely resulted in his relatively low ranking.

“If I could narrow it down to one thing, it's that a lot of people kind of look down on the AUS,” Jones said. “There's some good talent in the AUS. You look at some of the guys that have come out, like Devon Bailey of Edmonton, (Jonathan) Langa's doing a good job on special teams for Hamilton.

“There's good players that have come out of the AUS, and we need to stop looking down at the AUS because there's some good talent. So even though I was ranked at 18, it's all relative. I come here. I did pretty good in one-on-ones. I think I tested pretty well.”

And now there's a chance he'll be the first receiver taken on May 10.

ROUGH REVIEWS

One player who wasn't getting a lot of love from CFL talent evaluators on Sunday was Calgary Dinos running back Mercer Timmis, currently the seventh ranked prospect.

There were many questions about his pass blocking skills going into the combine, and he struggled in that department on Sunday.

“I can be a good blocker,” Timmis said. “I was getting a little aggressive. I wanted to hit these guys a lot today, and I probably got a little sloppy with some of my technique.

“It was definitely something I got asked in all my interviews, and I said it was something I wanted to show today on the field. I think I did that some reps, but I don't think I was consistent enough. It wasn't a lack of effort or a lack of aggression.”

NICE TIMING

The highlight reel play on Sunday was UBC Thunderbirds safety Taylor Loffler going horizontal to intercept a pass during the receiver-defensive back one-on-ones. To do it in front of about 100 CFL general managers, coaches and scouts? Even better.

“I was getting a little frustrated because I was getting some balls, which I knew I should have broken up, caught on me,” Loffler said. “The last couple reps, I was able to make good plays on the ball.”

AND WE QUOTE

“I play with passion. I play with heart. And, of course, I have the male equivalent of resting bitch face, if you will.”

– Laval offensive lineman Philippe Gagnon, whose 40 bench press reps on Sunday tied for the third most in combine history.

LATE HITS

The 40 times were relatively slow on Sunday, with Queen's receiver Doug Corby posting the top time of 4.51 seconds. “It helps a lot, but they also look at the one-on-ones and how you use that speed as a receiver,” Corby said. “I was a little upset with how a couple of them went, but I still feel like I showcased some of my speed out there that I showed in the 40.” ... UBC kicker Quinn Van Gylswyk came to the CFL combine but is drawing serious NFL interest and will have a pro day in Vancouver on March 30 ... Manitoba defensive tackle David Onyemata, the second ranked CFL prospect, didn't take part in the CFL combine and will instead have his pro day in Winnipeg on Monday. More than 15 NFL scouts are expected to attend ... Laval's offensive line trio of Charles Vaillancourt, Philippe Gagnon and Jason Lauzon-Seguin proved they won't be out of place on a CFL roster, while Simon Fraser's Michael Couture had a few moments to remember as well. Western defensive tackle Rupert Butcher had the best outing among the group on the other side of the ball, but some CFL teams are concerned about his consistency ... The turf at Varsity Centre proved to be slick for the second straight year, with players slipping all over the place.

kpenton@postmedia.com

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