2023 National Scouting Combine Featured Athletes Chris Canaday, WR from Wheeling University

How’d you end up at your current school? What was the recruiting process like?

I was raised in Grayson, Georgia, however I am from Prince George’s County, Maryland. My football development stems mostly from southern football.

Southern football is no joke. It is like night and day from football in the north. I left Georgia and moved to Maryland at the end of my sophomore year of high school. Therefore, I wasn’t recruited as heavily as I should have been due to me moving, and attending multiple high schools. I also kept switchingpositions which did not help me in my recruiting process. Therefore, I was very “under” recruited in high school. Especially, with the talent that I possess. I was blessed and grateful to get a couple of D2 offers, however with my talent I could have easily prevailed in higher divisions. I was recruited to play defense, safety to be specific. I committed to one school, however they pulled back, so I was lucky enough to go back to the first school that offered me. The school I ended up at did not offer a full scholarship, so the first couple years were tough for me and my family financially. After all that said, I am grateful for everything the university has taught me and provided for me.

 

What gives you an advantage over other athletes at Wide Receiver?

What gives me the advantage over other Wide Receivers, is my ability to maneuver after catch. I pride myself on yards after catch. I have the hands to be a possession receiver, however I feel I thrive on being able to extend plays. I am also a returner, therefore my vision and maneuverability stems from that as well. My ability to cut and my quickness is what I feel gives me an Also, my size and explosiveness allows me to be first to and come down with the ball every time.

 

What does being a student of a game mean to you?

Being a student of the game simply means that I am willing to do whatever it takes to get Thehigher the difficulty or competition, the higher I raise my level of play. A student of the game most importantly studies and learns from all their mistakes, and that’s exactly what I do. I won’t dwell on what happened. I take all criticism as a gift, because it either fuels me or educates me- which is both beneficial to me.

 

How does being a Wide Receiver reflect itself in your personal life?

Being a Wide Receiver definitely has its People automatically associate me with speed. I haveplayed every skilled position at a high level, therefore I look at all of them the same. Receiver hastaught me that staying disciplined is key. I feel as though repetition in anything helps to master whatever I need to. Whether that be for my school work, relationships, and most importantly on the field.

 

How would you describe your work ethic?

I would describe my work ethic as goal oriented and motivated. Once I put something I truly want to accomplish or get done in my head, then I cannot rest until I have completed I have always beenthis way as a child. I think it stems from having to always prove myself and others wrong all the time.

 

What do you consider to be one of the more important things you learned from the coaching staff?

I learned that nothing in life is truly guaranteed. This isn’t something that they necessarily told me, but just through my interactions with them and listening to things they would say. Everyone doesn’t always have your best interest at heart, therefore you should continue to control what you can control,and take every day “one day at a time”, and eventually it should provide you with the answers you seek. That’s the most important thing I took away from the coaching staff.

 

What would you consider to be your biggest accomplishment in your sports career so far?

Although I got All-Conference twice as a returner, my biggest accomplishment was how much teamsrespected and prepared for me They would come up to me at the end of the game, coaches and players, and explain how their key to victory was trying to contain or stop me. That is something no award can truly explain. Awards are cool and definitely a great thing to receive, but if no one respects you as a player or person then how valuable is it really? Therefore, my biggest accomplishment was the respect I received from every team I faced in college.

 

How did you hear about the National Scouting Combine?

I believe my head coach sent it to me via email However, it truly caught my attention when I saw it on twitter. I believe my coach sent it to me weeks prior.

 

Why did you choose the National Scouting Combine?

I chose the National Scouting Combine, because it just made sense. I wanted to showcase my talent infront of a bunch of credible people, and I feel as though this was the perfect opportunity to do so.

What do you hope to show people at the combine?

I hope to ultimately show how talented I really I feel as though I am the best kept secret due to how bad my sports career journey was. I wasn’t showcased wherever I went, so now I feel it’s time to do so at this combine.

 

What was your Major?

I finished my undergrad completing it with an Engineering Science major. I am currently on track tocompleting my graduate degree with a Masters in Business

 

Who is or has been the most influential person in your life?

Hands down my father has been and is the most influential person in my life. I would not be the person I am today without him always there, and making sure I stay on He preached that he didn’t wantme to have to worry about anything, so I could focus on what’s truly important- which is school and sports for me. My sister is also an influential person to me. She has taught me that if you really want something, then go get it, and I stand on that. I owe both of them everything in the end.

 

If not football, then what?

If not football, then I would continue to finish my MBA, and if it permitted itself I would go higher and get my doctorate degree. I feel as though the more education and knowledge you can obtain, the less dependent you are on anyone. I would further my education, and find a career in which I would enjoy.

 

What is something unique about you that people would find interesting?

I can play other sports at a high level. I played basketball with and against a handful of pros who are currently in the league. I think my coordination is very unique, because some sports take finesse. It isn’t always about how physical one can be with the other I think finesse comes with highlevel coordination. I also enjoy anime. Most of my streams involve anime.

 

If you had the opportunity to play another sport professionally, what sport would you choose?

It would definitely be I played basketball most of my life honestly. If it wasn’t football or if we had a break from football, that time was mainly used to practice and play basketball. I also feel as though basketball helped me on the football field in a way. Basketball requires a specific skill set and coordination to play at a high level. That skill needed for basketball just correlated to the football field for me.

 

Are you involved in mentoring, a charity or do you “give back” or ”pay it forward” in your community?

Yes, I have been doing charity work and “giving back” to the community of Wheeling ever since Iarrived on campus for the first I wasn’t forced to “give back” after the first time we were made to as a football team- my freshman year.

Everytime after that I grew to like it, and would voluntarily help out where it was needed within thecommunity of Wheeling. I have been doing stuff on a very small scale of course, but once I am more established with myself I want to “give back” on a larger scale.

 

2024 National Scouting Combine

February 18-22 held at Grand Park Events Center in Westifled, IN. Accepting draft eligible nominations now!
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