Meet the Calgary Stampeders draftees — a breakdown of the picks in the 2025 CFL Draft

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The Calgary Stampeders came away from the 2025 CFL Draft feeling like they got their men.

Especially with their first two picks — at No. 1 overall and a handful of slots later at No. 8 during Tuesday night’s pick-em.

That’s receiver Damien Alford — “the first pick was pretty easy,” cheered Stampeders director of Canadian scouting Dwayne Cameron — and offensive lineman Christopher Fortin, who “has a lot of versatility,” continued Cameron.

“We’re very happy and can’t wait to get started here (with training camp) in a week.”

Here’s the breakdown of the 10 CFL Draft picks made by the Stampeders …

WR Damien Alford, 24 (1st round, 1st overall), 6-foot-6, 224 lb., NCAA’s Utah Utes/Syracuse Orange

The skinny: In 42 games, including 28 starts at Syracuse, the Montreal native had 67 catches for 1,291 yards — an average of 19.3 yards per catch — and seven touchdowns. Alford’s most productive season with the Orange came in 2023 when he had 33 receptions for 610 yards and three scores. He played four games with Utah in 2024 and did not record any stats.

Cameron: “Ran a sub-4.5-second (time) in the 40 (yard dash). That kind of speed would be great for a regular-sized receiver. But at 6-foot-5, 225 (pounds), it’s elite. Those are NFL first-round-type athletic traits.”

OL Christopher Fortin, 24 (1st round, 8th overall), 6-foot-4, 303 lb., NCAA’s Connecticut Huskies

The skinny: The product of Saint-René, Que., played 41 games over four seasons with UConn, seeing action at centre, tackle and guard. Fortin was a starter at guard for the Huskies during the 2024 season.

Cameron: “Played alongside two other offensive linemen (at UConn) who are now going into the NFL in the 2025 season. So it’s an excellent group — they’ve been coached well. The kid lives in the weight room and has played a lot of high-level football for them. He’s played tackle, he’s played guard, and he’s played centre a number of games.”

TE/QB Quincy Vaughn, 23 (2nd round, 17th overall), 6-foot-4, 251 lb., NCAA’s North Dakota Fighting Hawks

The skinny: A converted quarterback, the Hamilton native saw action at tight end with North Dakota and also was under centre in short-yardage situations. Vaughn had 11 catches for 111 yards and one touchdown in 2024 and was a perfect 11-for-11 on keepers on short yardage. In 54 career games for the Fighting Hawks, he had 17 rushing touchdowns as well as 21 catches for 197 yards and four scores. Vaughn had four passing touchdowns in his first two seasons with North Dakota before the position switch.

Cameron: “He is big and has got a lot of length. He’s actually very, very adept as a pass-catcher, and so that’s something we’re very excited about. With the quarterback background and his size of 250 pounds and being the short-yardage quarterback at North Dakota, I certainly expect that’s something the offensive coaches will be leaning towards pretty quickly.”

DB Anton Haie, 24 (3rd round, 20th overall), 5-foot-11, 199 lb., U SPORTS’ Laval Rouge et Or

The skinny: The product of Lévis, Que., was a two-way performer for the Rouge et Or, playing defensive back and also excelling on special teams. Haie had five career blocked kicks in 26 career games with Laval. In 2024, he had 9.5 tackles and one interception as well as three pass breakups.

Cameron: “Powerfully built, almost kind of like a Brandon Dozier frame. So he’s got the frame where he can play either (strong-side linebacker) or free safety. He’s got good man coverage skills, excellent speed and elite change-direction times. We’ll probably start him out at cornerback.”

LB Nicky-Alexander Farinaccio, 25 (4th round, 32nd overall), 6-foot-1, 205 lb., U SPORTS’ Montreal Carabins

The skinny: The Montreal native was the President’s Trophy winner as the top defensive player in U SPORTS in 2022 and was a conference and league all-star in both 2022 and ’23. Farinaccio was the defensive MVP of the Carabins’ 2023 Vanier Cup win over UBC. In 25 career games, Farinaccio has 120 tackles, including 19.5 tackles for loss, 12.5 sacks, four forced fumbles and two interceptions.

Cameron: “National stand-up (U SPORTS’) Defensive Player of the Year in 2022. He’s got 13 career sacks, almost 20 tackles for losses. Had some injury issues in 2024, with a hamstring and the knee that kind of limited his playing time. But he’s a guy that’s played at a high level in a program that is perennially a national championship contender.”

WR Vyshonne Janusas, 24 (5th round, 38th overall), 5-foot-11, 221 lb., U SPORTS’ Guelph Gryphons

The skinny: The native of Windsor, Ont., played eight games for the Gryphons in 2024 and established career highs with 37 catches and 546 receiving yards. In 16 career games with Guelph, Janusas had 71 catches for 1,010 yards and eight majors and also returned 30 kickoffs for 800 yards and one touchdown.

Cameron: “A lot of toughness there. What’s unique about Vyshonne is his physicality. He’s got an 80-inch wingspan, so he’ll be really good for special teams. He likes to block.”

RB Ludovick Choquette, 23 (6th round, 47th overall), 5-foot-9, 206 lb., NCAA’s Long Island Sharks

The skinny: The product of Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que., played six games for the Long Island University Sharks in 2024 and had 216 rushing yards, as well as seven catches for 37 yards and one touchdown. Choquette previously played four seasons with the NCAA’s Western Illinois Leathernecks, and in 34 games for them, he had 84 catches for 642 yards and five touchdowns and added 679 yards along the ground with five more scores.

Cameron: “A compact build and excellent pass protector. He’s got 20 career pass catches, so he’s good catching the ball out of the backfield — averages five yards per carry in his college career.”

OL Matt Stokman, 23 (7th round, 56th overall), 6-foot-3, 334 lb., U SPORTS’ Manitoba Bisons

The skinny: The Winnipeg product played 36 games over five seasons with the Bisons and made 26 starts, including 24 at guard. In 2024, he was part of an offensive line that helped Manitoba record a Canada West-leading 255.1 rushing yards per game.

Cameron: “He’s working to bring that weight down a little bit. But he did a decent job at the CFL Combine. He’s probably more of a developmental guy. He’ll play inside at the guard spot for us, and we’ll see where it goes.”

DL Max von Muehldorfer, 22 (7th round, 61st overall), 6-foot-1, 290 lb., U SPORTS’ Western Mustangs

The skinny: The Calgary product and St. Mary’s High School graduate played 23 games over four seasons with Western and had 43.5 tackles, including two tackles for loss and two sacks. Von Muehldorfer was part of the Mustangs’ Vanier Cup championship team in 2021.

Cameron: “Interesting thing about Max is he’s a junior power-lifting champion, so he may be our assistant strength coach, in addition to playing defensive line for us, too. He went to Western, another high-level football program. He’ll play on the interior for us.”

DB Ashton Miller-Melancon, 23, (8th round, 65th overall), 6-foot-2, 203 lb., U SPORTS’ Queen’s Gaels

The skinny: The Montreal native played 40 games over four seasons with Queen’s and counted 150 career tackles, including 3.5 tackles for loss. He also had 16 interceptions and 27 passes defended, as well as two forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries.

Cameron: “I was actually really surprised that he lasted this long in the draft. He’s a big defensive back … he has 43 career touches of the football — 16 career interceptions, and 27 pass breakups — so that’s a lot of production on the ball. He’s smart, and he’s played safety, he’s played SAM, he’s played half-back, he’s played corner … kind of a do-it-all guy and a special teams’ big-body type.”

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