Cherry, Zerr, Pickett begin Canadian Football League careers

While the province of Saskatchewan eagerly awaits another Roughrider season, there will be many football fans, in Saskatoon and area, that will follow the B.C. Lions closely in 2022. Earlier this month former U of S Huskies Riley Pickett (DL), Noah Zerr (OL) and Nathan Cherry (DL) all cracked the Lions line up. “We had a little group hug”, said Cherry, who was selected third overall by the Lions in the 2022 draft. “We were all ecstatic when we realized that all three of us were going to be here for six months.”

Zerr was chosen 12^th overall in the second round of the CFL draft, while Pickett was a 5th round pick by the Lions. “It’s nice coming home after football all day to decompress,” said Cherry. “We can talk about things back home and family. It’s nice having my best friends here…just to hang out with.” The three former Huskies are living together, close to the Lions practice facility in Surrey.

In his university career, Cherry had the good fortune of being surrounded by coaches that not only played in the CFL, but have won Grey Cup championships. Huskie defensive coordinator Warren Muzika won a Grey Cup with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in 1999, while U of S head coach Scott Flory was part of three Grey Cup championship teams with Montreal.

In B.C., Cherry now takes guidance from Lions defensive coordinator John Bowman, who spent 14 years with the Montreal Alouettes as a defensive end. Bowman was a teammate of Scott Flory in 2009 and 2010 when Montreal won back to back Grey Cup championships. “Coach Bowman is awesome,” said Cherry. “He’s a player’s coach. He’s really knowledgeable as far as footwork and pass rushing goes. He’s taught me a lot already, and it’s only been a month!”