The Ottawa Redblacks chose Auburn wide receiver Nick Mardner with the second pick in the Canadian Football League Draft on Tuesday night.
Ottawa selected Mardner after the Edmonton Elks made Cincinnati linebacker Joel Dublanko the No. 1 pick.
The CFL Draft is limited to players who will be able to play with a national designation. The 6-foot-6 Mardner is from Oakville, Ontario.
Also selected was former South Alabama linebacker DK Bonhomme, who grew up in Canada. Bonhomme played at USA in 2022 after three seasons at Indiana.
The Elks chose Bonhomme at No. 10, the first pick of the second round.
Mardner did not have any receptions and played in only four games – against Samford, Texas A&M, Georgia and LSU – in 2023, his lone season at Auburn.
Mardner was at Hawaii for three seasons and Cincinnati for one before coming to Auburn. He had 81 receptions for 1,488 yards and 11 touchdowns during his college career.
CFL teams are required to dress at least 21 players and start a minimum of seven who are Canadians. All enter the league via the draft.
CFL teams are drafting 74 national players on Tuesday night with the league’s nine teams scheduled to start rookie camps on May 8. Training camps start on May 12 in preparation for the first preseason game on May 20 and the 2024 regular-season opener on June 6.
Mardner also has an invitation to participate as a tryout player at the New York Giants’ rookie minicamp on May 10-11.
Stories by Mark Inabinett
Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.