Free agent Canadian receiver Michael Klukas has been in the lab during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Klukas has been working virtually with EVO Sports Training in Long Beach, California. Speed coach Gary Cablayan helped the University of Calgary product improve his burst. Cablayan made his name training NFL speedsters DeSean Jackson and John Ross.
Jackson ran a 4.35 laser-timed 40-yard dash at the 2008 NFL Combine. He’s been one of the fastest players in the NFL for over a decade. The 34-year-old has 612 receptions for 10,656 yards, 17.4 yards per catch, and 56 touchdowns in 160 NFL games.
Ross made headlines by breaking Chris Johnson’s NFL Combine 40-yard sprint record by running a time of 4.22 seconds. The Cincinnati Bengals selected Ross in the first round, ninth overall during the 2017 NFL Draft.
Cablayan coached Klukas to be able to achieve similar results to Jackson and Ross with a 4.36 laser-timed 40-yard clocking. It proved the six-foot, 189-pound pass catcher can run with the best of them. From a day-to-day perspective, Klukas was with coach Joshua Haines.
After a year-and-a-half of training in garages and parkades, it felt great to hit a run like this. I’m ready for that next opportunity! Klukas tweeted following the blazing time.
Klukas spent his first full season in the CFL as member of the Calgary Stampeders in 2019, starting 11 games and playing 13 overall. The 27-year-old made 16 receptions for 169 yards and added three carries for 29 yards while playing with Bo Levi Mitchell and Nick Arbuckle.
After going unselected in the 2016 CFL Draft, the Stamps signed the Calgary native on December 7, 2017. He spent three months on the practice roster during the 2018 season.
During Klukas’ fifth and final year in U Sports football, he made 46 catches for 739 yards and shared the team lead with seven receiving touchdowns in eight regular season games. He had four 100-yard games including a season-high 129 yards and two touchdowns in a September 16 contest against the University of Manitoba.
Over five seasons from 2013 to 2017 with the U of C, Klukas notched 82 receptions for 1,253 yards. He also saw special teams action with the Dinos and in 2015 returned a punt 110 yards for a touchdown against the University of British Columbia.
Klukas is an alumnus of Calgary’s St. Mary’s High School.
