Path to the pros: Erik Andersen’s rise to the CFL Draft

A national champion, three-time OUA champion, two-time First Team All-Canadian and the 2024 J.P. Metras Award recipient are just some of the accolades fourth-year star offensive lineman Erik Andersen has accumulated during his time at Western. 

An integral part of the school’s football program since he stepped out on the field in his first year on the team, Erik thrives under pressure.

“The goal every time we step on the field is to see how quickly we can break the other team. See at what point they don’t want to be here anymore,” Erik says about his mentality during games.

In the winter edition of the Canadian Football League Scouting Bureau’s top 20 prospects, Erik was ranked 10th — meaning he could be a first-round or early second-round pick in this year’s CFL draft.

But how did this six-foot-six, 307-pound star get his start?

Erik got his first crack at football back in high school — a local of London, Ont., Erik attended A. B. Lucas Secondary School. He credits his coaches for getting him into the sport and helping him develop his skills. 

Before football, Erik spent the earlier years of his life playing hockey. But he says he spent too much time in the penalty box and was too slow to keep chasing the hockey dream.  

“I was playing hockey my whole life. I was in love with hockey, and hockey wasn't in love with me, I guess,” says Erik. 

In Grade 9, Erik decided to try out football — in his opinion, his start was rocky, but he stuck with it since he had the size for it. 

As he was finishing high school in 2019, newly hired Western University offensive coordinator Gaetan Richard convinced Erik that Western was the place for him.

Erik’s rookie season in 2021 came with uncertainty due to COVID-19 — having cancelled the previous season — which led to a good portion of training camp taking place over Zoom. 

“I was a rookie, came into training camp, and started at the bottom,” Erik says. “Going into camp, Coach [Richard] did everything he could to make sure that me and everyone was ready. We're meeting on Zoom, learning the playbook every week, physically they had us in great shape.” 

Erik eventually earned the starting job after coming out of camp, and he was ready to go with his first-ever collegiate game against the McMaster University Marauders, which was only about a week after camp ended. 

“[Richard] was just throwing every possible look they could give us. And I think I might have had a tougher week of practice, might have felt a bit down on myself,” Erik says, noting the hard practice style typical at Western. 

But the hard practices paid off as the Mustangs ran the ball over 300 yards in a dominant 41-13 win in Erik’s first-ever touch of Ontario University Athletics football. 

Following that game, the rest of the season followed suit. The Mustangs dropped one game against the University of Guelph Gryphons but would get their revenge in the OUA semifinal before cleaning up the Yates Cup en route to a Vanier Cup championship. 

Erik is thankful he was healthy in his first two seasons and had no major injuries until his third year, besides a minor ankle injury in his sophomore season. 

In Erik’s third year, during the sixth game of the season against University of Windsor, he tore his MCL and meniscus. It was the first time Erik had a leadership role, and he found himself sidelined for the next six weeks after that game.

“Just mentally sitting back and watching it unfold. It's tough, but it's a lot easier when you got such a good squad with you,” says Erik.

But the team stayed undefeated en route to another Yates Cup. Returning for the Ontario championship, Erik won his third Yates Cup in three years. 

Erik credits Western head coach Greg Marshall, who has been at the helm of the Mustangs football program since 2007, for encouraging a positive team culture.

“Just like the culture that he's built here, one thing that he's talked about before was how the worst guy on the team has to feel as included as the very best guy on the team,” says Erik. “If everybody feels they're part of something no matter how small their role is, then we're going to be successful.” 

With his collegiate career now over, Erik has his eyes set on the CFL Combine from Mar. 21 to 23 in Regina, Sask. and the Apr. 29 CFL draft in Toronto. 

Erik is currently training out of Komoka, Ont. with Trevor Williamson, a former Mustang football athlete and renowned athletic trainer with a star-studded client list. It’s safe to say his training regimen is definitely in check. 

Specifically, Erik wants to show off his athleticism in the testing portion and then combine that with his strength for the practice portion.

“They'll get to see me put the athleticism and strength together with the one-on-ones, and I'll get to show off my physicality and all that sort of stuff as well. So it's cool where you get to just show them how good of an athlete you are,” says Erik.

For now, Erik will continue to work daily for both the Combine in March and CFL draft in April — where he looks to be a top-10 pick alongside fellow Mustang Jackson Findlay. 

Either way, Erik knows the work is never done. 

“I'm sure wherever I end up, I'll show up there, and there'll be a list of things that I need to work on. I think there's always, always, room for improvement,” he says.