Elks sign CFL Combine standout Gabriel Appiah-Kubi, four others

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The Edmonton Elks have signed Combine standout Gabriel Appiah-Kubi after the Canadian receiver went unselected in the 2023 CFL Draft.

Appiah-Kubi earned his way to the CFL Combine in Edmonton after a strong showing at the Invitational Combine in Waterloo and did not disappoint. At five-foot-nine and 157 pounds, he clocked the fastest forty-yard dash with a time of 4.44 seconds while posting a 4.2-second short shuttle and 7.06-second three-cone. He also leapt 10 feet and nine inches in the broad jump, while posting a 37-inch vertical and six reps on the bench.

The Brampton, Ont. native played 22 games over three seasons at York University, totalling 26 catches for 309 yards in his career.

The Elks also signed Canadian running back Derek Best, American offensive lineman Tony Gray, American receiver Quan Harrison and American running back Ja’Darius Woods.

Best was selected with the 65th overall pick in the eighth round of the 2023 CFL Draft. The six-foot, 200-pound back has played the last two seasons in the Canadian Junior Football League with the Langley Rams, rushing for 638 yards and 6 touchdowns in 15 regular season games while winning the Canadian Bowl in 2021. He previously played two seasons at Western University, recording eight special teams tackles.

Gray was a four-star recruit from Loganville, Ga. who committed to Ole Miss in 2018 before transferring to Central Florida the following season. The six-foot-five, 310-pound tackle eventually landed at Jackson State and was named second-team All-Southwestern Athletic Conference in 2021 after playing 10 games. 

Harrison began his collegiate career at East Tennessee State University, where he collected 981 all-purpose yards in two seasons and was named the second-team all-conference return specialist in 2017. The five-foot-nine, 185-pound speedster transferred to the University of West Georgia in 2019, catching 80 passes for 1,162 yards and six touchdowns in two seasons while adding a punt return score. He was named second-team all-conference as a receiver and returner in 2021.

Woods attended Baker University from 2018 to 2021, where he was named a three-time NAIA All-American. The five-foot-eight, 195-pound ball carrier set new all-time NAIA career records with 6,666 rushing yards and 96 rushing touchdowns, earning an invite to Seattle Seahawks mini-camp in 2022.