U of M star Jackson Tachinski to perform as QB, receiver at CFL's national combine

Dan Ralph · The Canadian Press

· Posted: Mar 18, 2025 4:05 PM EDT | Last Updated: 15 minutes ago

Once again, Jackson Tachinski volition propulsion treble duty.

The Manitoba Bisons prima volition execute astatine backmost and receiver astatine the CFL's nationalist combine, which begins Friday successful Regina. Tachinski's prowess nether centre is good known arsenic helium was Canada West's apical subordinate past play aft passing for 1,842 yards and rushing for 637 yards.

But Tachinski besides lined up astatine receiver during past month's invitational harvester successful Waterloo, Ont., faring good astatine some positions to garner an invitation to the nationalist event.

"I'm anxious to get backmost retired there," Tachinski said. "It [national combine] can't travel soon enough, honestly."

Players volition enactment successful idiosyncratic investigating with a 225-pound seat press, 40-yard dash, vertical and wide jumps, three-cone and shuttle tally connected Friday. Then they'll don pads for 2 days of practices and one-on-one matchups successful beforehand of CFL coaches, wide managers and different football-operations staff.

Teams tin besides behaviour 15-minute interviews with prospects, thing they couldn't bash successful Waterloo. The CFL holds some its planetary and Canadian drafts April 29.

"I privation them to cognize I'm a hard worker, that I'm going to springiness my each to assistance immoderate squad drafts me," Tachinski said. "I privation that squad to cognize it has a victor who's a shot subordinate and volition bash immoderate helium tin to triumph games.

"They [CFL officials] asked maine to instrumentality immoderate reps astatine receiver and I didn't privation to backmost down from the challenge. I wanted to amusement I'm consenting to bash everything I tin to marque a roster."

At Waterloo, Tachinski posted a 40-yard dash clip of 4.75 seconds, a 28.5-inch vertical leap, 7.15-second 3 cone and 4.46-second shuttle run. But it was his creaseless execution of the gauntlet drill — wherever a receiver sprints crossed the field, catching passes from aggregate quarterbacks successful accelerated succession to trial their speed, agility and quality to drawback connected the tally — that caught galore scouts' eye.

Pass-catching experience

It was the archetypal clip Tachinski had ever participated successful the drill.

"I'm excited to get different ace astatine it," helium said. "I felt creaseless and it felt earthy truthful I'm conscionable trying to physique disconnected of that.

"I'm conscionable going to effort to look a small amended this time."

Tachinski has acquisition astatine receiver. He played the presumption for 2 years successful insignificant shot portion serving arsenic backup quarterback.

"That was Grade 8 and 9 successful assemblage football," helium said. "I'm not definite if you privation to number that due to the fact that we didn't propulsion the shot much."

Even with that experience, Tachinski inactive finds himself astatine somewhat of a competitory disadvantage going up against players who've played receiver for each oregon astir of their clip successful football.

But what Tachinski mightiness deficiency successful receiving know-how, helium much than makes up for with his intelligence attack to the position.

"It's a small intimidating erstwhile you're successful that situation due to the fact that they've been doing it overmuch longer than I have," helium said. "But my mindset has been that I'm a truly bully jock arsenic good and I tin bent with these guys.

Hoops inheritance helped transition

"I cognize I'm going to beryllium capable to prime it up quick, that I'm going to enactment harder and volition get a batch amended astatine it."

But Tachinski does person immoderate factors moving to his advantage. As a quarterback, helium has acquisition speechmaking defences and processing a rapport with receivers.

His hoops background, Tachinski came to Manitoba successful 2019 arsenic a shot and hoops recruit, has besides helped easiness his modulation to receiver.

"When I was moving the one-on-ones astatine the invitational combine, that was beauteous overmuch my archetypal clip doing that," helium said. "And it truly felt similar playing hoops with each of the angles, having to high-point the shot and each of that.

"And erstwhile I'm retired there, I tin benignant of ideate what the backmost is seeing, what his reads are and I deliberation that gives maine an vantage successful the passing game. I deliberation I cognize much astir receiver than I deliberation I do."

Having to hole for aggregate positions astatine a harvester means a heavier off-season workload, but Tachinski is bully with that.

"I'm moving much and doing much cutting but similar I said I'm benignant of utilized to it from playing a batch of basketball," helium said. "It's conscionable much hours spent connected the turf, but it's decidedly worthy it and volition beryllium successful the end."