The Ryan Dinwiddie era officially began in Ottawa with Rookies hitting the field and you can feel it.
Rookie Camp to many may seem like a waste of time, only 2 to 3 days to evaluate talent that more likely not impact the roster right away but it is a prime time for players to get exposure without the pressure of out battling veterans.
It is hard to evaluate someone on two days of on-field work but it does set up the expectations heading into main camp next week.
“I thought the first two days went well, we got some tough decisions to make, a lot of talent in this rookie class” said Ryan Dinwiddie
When asked about the mind set and focus that went into rookie camp, Dinwiddie said “I thought we were pretty solid, we were trying to slow down some things and walk through it, do some teaching”
Teaching was a talking point for Dinwiddie with a lot of first time Canadian Football players, having them adjust to the differences between Canadian and American football.
Talking with Receiver Coach Pete Constanza, he reiterated that message. “Are they taking the coaching points on the field on the field and apply it?” “For receiver position it’s getting used to the wilder field, the waggle and going back to one foot [In bounds] to be a completed ball instead of two, teaching them some of the finer details”
Giordano Vaccaro was one of the main focuses during the last two days, the first overall pick out of Purdue has shown exactly why he was selected there. He saw snaps at both Center and Left Guard during team and individual drills.
“I will do anything to get the team to win, wherever coach wants me” said Vaccaro when asked about how he plans to help the team to be successful
“We’re going to have him as a guard right now, let him get comfortable there and then we’ll move him to center. I see him a center/guard combination” said Head Coach Ryan Dinwiddie.
When asked what Dinwiddie was looking for out of the quarterbacks over the two days, especially with 3 rookies in attendance, the answer was simple, “I want to see them command the huddle. A lot of these guys in college football, they just clap and they can’t verbalize it anymore. So that’s one of the things we have to teach”
Rookie Camp may not wield anyone that can make a Week 1 impact right now, but understand, the expectations and standards for the year have been set.
Rookies making their mark?
There is always some diamonds in the rough in these situations and there have been a couple of players that really stood out over the last two days.
American Receiver Cade McDonald out of Miami (Ohio) much like Kalil Pimpleton did in 2024, has shown off his ability to use his speed to create separation. Not only has he shown his ability to make a difference on offence with his speed but he was taking punt returns as well.
McDonald didn’t have a flashy NCAA career, per The Football Database, he had only saw 15 games during his time with the Michigan State Spartans (2019-2022) before moving over the Miami (Ohio). He would put up 986 yards in 25 games with the Bobcats. He saw time with the Cleveland Browns in 2025.
This is the toughest position group heading into rookie camp, I was heading into this hoping that one of Elijah Collins (Oklahoma State), Julian Gray (Liberty) and Marquez Cooper (San Diego State) would separate themselves from the rest of the group. These 3 showed that they all deserve that RB3 spot and if they aren’t careful, any of the three could push Greg Bell and Daniel Adeboboye for their active roster spot in camp.
Defensive Back Marcus Barnes (Williams & Mary) has shown the ability to keep up and read the play effectively. I wouldn’t classify him as a ballhawk but more a technically sound defensive back who can stay with his man.
Injury updates
Dinwiddie has provides some updates on the current injured REDBLACKS ahead of Main Camp.
National Receiver Nick Mardner – Nick should be good to go for camp, waiting on a couple of more things medically before he can be cleared.
American Defensive Back Amari Henderson – Week to Two Weeks away but they don’t want to rush him back.
National Offensive Lineman Sean McEwen – Cleared for camp but will be load management to start.
REDBLACKS Main Camp will open May 10. Roster and Schedule will be released a later date.