Local football players get a taste of the big leagues

St. James-Assiniboia

St. Vital

Two Winnipeg Rifles hope their Canadian Football League training camp experience with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers will have them locked and loaded for the 2026 Canadian Junior Football League season. Linebacker Cohen McCluskey and receiver Jarome Penner earned the coveted invitations with strong junior performances in 2025.

Penner was a First Team All-Canadian in 2025, thanks to 40 receptions for 794 yards and three touchdowns in eight games. Despite missing three games, McCluskey registered 26 tackles, one sack and one interception. He holds the Rifles record with three interceptions in a 2024 game.

“The off-season was about two months shorter because Bomber camp starts in May rather than Rifles starting in July, so I had to shorten up all my training blocks,” Penner, a Dakota Collegiate alumnus, explained. “I focused mainly on transferring my strength into speed and power and being more efficient.”

“I was told by (head coach) Geordie (Wilson) this offseason to be ready because it might be happening, so I trained all offseason after recovering from my shoulder injury just on my own,” McCluskey added.

This was Penner’s second Blue Bomber training camp, so he knew what to expect, but the experience was new for McCluskey, who attended Sturgeon Heights Collegiate.

“It was pretty fun,” McCluskey said. “It was a lot different than what I’m used to, but I thought it was a very good experience competing at that level. I definitely learned a lot from the coaches. Everything is a lot faster and more complex.”

“Camp was intense and fast-paced,” Penner said. “The biggest adjustment is the mental game. You don’t have much time to think about all the little things on the field; it has to be instant. There is much more precision and very little margin of error on every rep.”

Both stars saw action, with Penner seeing three targets over the two games. He caught two receptions for three yards. McCluskey also got to wear the blue and gold.

“Playing in the preseason games was surreal and unforgettable; hard to put into words, but it felt great,” Penner said. “Once you get past that, it’s just football. Be confident in your abilities and know you deserve to be there.”

Penner kept his eyes open every day, watching how stars like Tim White and Nic Demski. He said he received plenty of good advice.

“It was always great to see how Nic and coach Bralon Addison dissect plays,” Penner said. “Tommy Condell, the offensive coordinator, was also really helpful in how he taught the playbook and concepts. “The biggest thing I’ll bring back to Rifles is the ‘why’ behind every play. Playing with an extreme level of detail during camp and then bringing that to the Rifles will allow me to play faster, lead by example and push our receiver group to a higher standard.”

Wilson can’t wait to see his star pupils apply their experience this fall.

“Cohen is a football throwback, as tough as kids get,” Wilson said. “He is a very smart player, with great instincts that lead him to the ball. He makes game-changing plays.

“Jarome has developed into one of the top receivers in the country,” Wilson added. “It’s not that he is always catching deep balls; more often than not, his great route running and elusiveness after the catch result in explosive plays.”