There are few things in sports better than a little bad blood.
The Toronto Argonauts have a long-standing geographical rivalry with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, but over the last three years the feud between the Argos and Montreal Alouettes has gained a little oomph.
In each of the last three seasons the two teams have met in the Eastern Final. The Argos won in 2022 and 2024, the Als in 2023, and each time the victor went on to win the Grey Cup.
Adding a little fuel to the interprovincial fire, in each of the last two seasons the Argos have raided the 514 in the first round of the CFL Draft. A year ago, they made receiver Kevin Mital the fifth overall pick, while with the seventh overall selection this year the Boatmen grabbed defensive end Jeremiah Ojo.
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Neither player was supposed to fall that far in the draft.
Ojo played his CEGEP football at John Abbott College in Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue on the West Island, then at the Universite de Montreal. He will make his CFL debut about two kilometers on the other side of Mount Royal from the U of M when the Argos take on the Als on Friday night (7:30: TSN, TSN 1050).
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“I’m very excited, I get to play in front of family, in front of my loved ones,” Ojo told Argonauts.ca. “It couldn’t have been any better. First day, first game, my family gets to come and support me. They were there on draft night supporting me, first game they get to support me. It’s what I’ve been dreaming of.”
There will, however, be something different this time for Ojo when playing in Montreal, he won’t be cheering for the home team. He grew up as an Alouettes fan, idolizing Ben Cahoon.
He’s now in a new city, in a new province, playing in a new league, one he’s just getting used to.
What’s been the biggest eye opener for him?
“I would say the speed, the speed of everything,” said Ojo. “In U SPORTS you’re used to the speed, and you’re used to being the top athlete. Here, everyone’s an athlete, everyone’s bigger, everyone’s stronger. But it’s also game play, whether it’s special teams or defence you have to play much quicker, so you have to adapt faster.”
The question of how much Ojo will get into the defensive line rotation will be answered come game time. He will also be on three of the four special teams; kickoff, kickoff return, and punt return, though he may also see action on the punt team.
But first-round picks generally aren’t used on players who only play special teams. Years from now the selection will be judged by how good Ojo becomes on the line.
Charged with helping him improve there is Greg Marshall, the Argos defensive line coach.
“It’s always fun working with the young guys and trying to build their understanding of the game,” Marshall told Argonauts.ca. “To get a feel for what their strengths and weaknesses are and then try to help them improve in the areas they need to improve.”
Ojo has officially been an Argo for less than a month, signing with the team on May 11 after attending minicamp with the New York Giants. But in that brief period – made even shorter by a minor injury that kept him off the field for the first few days of Argo camp – he has an idea of where he needs to improve his game.
“When it comes to the defensive side, I need to work on my get off,” he explained. “I feel that if I can get off the ball as quick as I used to, I’ll be able to play. On special teams, to be more decisive and more sound in technique.”
Marshall likes what he’s seen so far from the former Montreal Carabin star.
“He’s a hard-working guy,” said the coach. “He’s a good athlete. Like a lot of young guys, he’s got a lot to learn but he’s soaking it up pretty good. He’s putting a lot of time and effort into improving his understanding of the game. He got slowed a little bit during training camp because he missed a few days with a couple of minor injuries, but he’s coming along.”
He’s certainly athletic. Somehow a man 6’2”, 245-pounds ran a 4.59-40 at the CFL Combine.
“I’m excited about his athleticism,” continued Marshall. “He can run, he’s got some quickness, good change of direction, he uses his hands well. You can see he got some good coaching at the university level. We’re hoping to expand his understanding of the game and his repertoire as far pass rushing and things of that nature.”
He has the physical skills to become a difference maker in the league, but there’s more to it than that. Ojo may be out of school, but he’s still doing homework.
“It’s definitely been more complex than U SPORTS, so I’m still getting used to it. One of the main differences is that you’ve got to put in much more time in your playbook. Once you do that, you get much more adapted.”
Jeremiah Ojo admits he’s not an overly emotional man and expects to be cool and composed when the anthem is playing on Friday. It would be safe to assume that the friends and family members gathered to watch him make his pro football debut may not share his composure.