Ex-hilltop’s draft news delayed
Quick, somebody tell former Saskatoon Hilltop Schnitzler he’s just been picked by the Ti-cats
Tommy Schnitzler was, apparently, the last one to know.
An internet problem delayed his response after he was selected in the eighth round, 72nd overall, of Thursday’s Canadian Football League Draft by the Hamilton Tiger-cats.
Schnitzler had been watching the draft in Saskatoon on his laptop with his family. The Wi-fi connection wasn’t great, so the screen lagged.
“It’s actually a pretty funny story,” says Schnitzler, who played five seasons for the Saskatoon Hilltops before moving on to play two years with U Sports’ University of British Columbia Thunderbirds.
“We get to the last round there and I kind of accepted that I was probably not going to get drafted. There were a couple of picks left and then, suddenly, my phone started blowing up from by buddies, saying ‘You’re drafted! You’re drafted!’ I was, like, ‘What are you talking about? I haven’t heard anything.’ I just waited a little bit. A couple of minutes later, I finally saw my name come up there and I was very, very excited. It was a pretty exciting moment.
“It was pretty funny because everybody was texting me. Everybody knew before I did.”
Back during his Canadian Junior Football League days, everybody with the Hilltops knew that Schnitzler — a versatile player who can play on the defensive line, linebacker, long-snapper and special teams — had CFL potential. It came as no surprise that he was drafted.
“No, not at all,” said Toppers head coach Tom Sargeant. “He’s such a great kid with such a great attitude and look at the potential. He’s 6-4, 6-5, and always growing. He’s got a great frame and those are the type of frames that the CFL coaches and GMS are looking for.”
Hilltops defensive co-ordinator Jeff Yausie, himself a former CFLER, saw that same upside.
“We knew he had the potential back when we sent him to Rider camp (as a junior invitee),” Yausie said. “We always knew that, being a long snapper, he had the frame and athletic ability to play linebacker/ defensive end and be a great special teamer. He always knew he was a tough guy. If anything, you had to slow him down from bashing guys. He’s got a good motor and flexibility (to play different roles).
“I was pumped when I saw that (he had been drafted).”
Sargeant remembers Schnitzler as having natural ability as a defender but also being a four-year long-snapper and “great special teamer” who was always the first guy down the field in coverage.
Schnitzler arrived at UBC in 2018 after his stint with his hometown Hilltops. His 6-foot-5, 245-pound frame made an immediate impact, as he combined for 45 total tackles over his two years at UBC.
Schnitzler said he talked to Ticats head coach Orlondo Steinauer and special teams coach Jeff Reinebold on Thursday night and D-line coach Randy Melvin on Friday.
“We touched base a bit,” he said. “I feel they’re looking at me as a long snapper but also expressed value in just a big body/athlete type guy on special teams and maybe I take a few reps on the D-line, too. I guess I’ll have to go into camp and see what shakes out to be.
“My goal is to go in there and try and win the long-snapping job, but we’ll see what happens with that.”
Schnitzler wasn’t the only former Hilltop taken in the 2020 CFL Draft. Former Topper Nick Summach, a 6-foot-8, 330-pound offensive lineman from the University of Saskatchewan Huskies, was chosen by the Edmonton Eskimos.