Herdman fired up by fall in CFL draft

Canadian linebacker with designs on medical school has a chip on each shoulder

Justin Herdman will report to the Toronto Argonauts with a big chip on his shoulder.

Toronto selected the six-foot-one, 235-pound Simon Fraser linebacker in the seventh round, 54th overall, in Sunday’s CFL draft. Herdman was the fifth linebacker drafted and second by Toronto, which took Laurier’s Nakas Onyeka in the fifth round. He was, however, selected six spots ahead of his twin brother Jordan, also an SFU linebacker who was drafted by the B.C. Lions.

But when rookie camp opens later this month, Justin Herdman will have something to prove.

“There were many linebackers picked ahead of me and that was frustrating,” Herdman said. “It definitely gives me more ammunition, it’s added more fuel to the fire.

“I’m ready to compete and give 110 per cent and show why I should’ve been the first overall linebacker picked.”

Herdman, a Winnipeg native, had 73 tackles, nine tackles for a loss, two fumble recoveries and an interception last season at Simon Fraser, an NCAA Division II program. He was a three-time selection to the conference’s all-academic team.

Coming from Simon Fraser, Herdman will have to adapt to playing three-down football on a wider, longer field. Herdman won’t have much time to impress as CFL teams only play two exhibition games before starting the regular season.

But Herdman’s biggest challenge could be adjusting to life without his brother.

Teammates on the field, the Herdmans are often inseparable off it. They were workout partners in the gym and biomedical physiology majors in the classroom and many times were seen together working at the campus library.

“It’s going to be a new challenge . . . we haven’t been apart for very long,” Herdman said. “But it’s something I feel we can handle and we’re both comfortable with because we’re always going to be in touch as we follow each other’s careers.

“I have to do my best to get involved with the team and the new teammates I’ll be playing beside. I feel like Jordan and I are going to succeed wherever we go.”

That new reality won’t be permanent. After football, the Herdmans plan to attend medical school to become radiologists.

Herdman hopes to continue honouring his father, former CFL player James Reed, while in Toronto.

At SFU, Jordan wore the No. 57 his father had while with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Philadelphia Eagles while Justin had the No. 48 his dad wore while in the USFL.

Canadian linebacker Thomas Miles wore No. 48 with Toronto, but he’s now in Winnipeg after being released this off-season.

“I definitely could find another number but I’m going to try my best to stay with No. 48,” Herdman said.