Receiver Wilson enjoying solid rookie season with Winnipeg Blue Bombers

Winnipeg Blue Bombers' Ontaria Wilson (80) catches the pass as B.C. Lions' T.J. Lee (6) defends during first half CFL action in Winnipeg Thursday, August 1, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/John Woods

Ontaria Wilson has been quite a find for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.

The six-foot, 175-pound rookie is the CFL club's top receiver with 37 catches for 575 yards and two touchdowns at the halfway point of the season for Winnipeg (3-6). Wilson's emergence has been timely with starters Kenny Lawler, Dalton Schoen and most recently Drew Wolitarsky all sidelined with injuries.

"I hate that the guys got hurt but I'm also grateful for the opportunity," Wilson said in a telephone interview. "Being a young guy, you just want to be able to prove yourself to your teammates and be able to contribute."

Wilson's contribution has been significant of late. He has surpassed the 100-yard receiving plateau in two straight games and three of Winnipeg's last four. Wilson registered career highs in catches (13) and yards (201) in the Bombers' 41-37 home win over Calgary on July 12.

The success comes after Wilson, 24, of Ashburn, Ga., had just two 100-yard games over his five-year tenure at Florida State and never recorded more than nine catches in a game before the contest versus Calgary.

Wilson had seven catches for 112 yards in Winnipeg's last game, a 25-0 home victory over B.C. on Aug. 1. The Bombers resume their schedule Sunday visiting the Lions (5-4), who've lost three straight.

"We needed that win going into the bye week," Wilson said. "If we had a winning record, maybe it would've been another win but that was a big win for us at the time."

It has been a slow start for a Winnipeg club chasing a fifth straight Grey Cup appearance. But, despite their record, the Bombers remain in the thick of it in a very tight West Division. They trail third-place Calgary (4-5) by just two points and are only five behind first-place Saskatchewan (5-3-1).

However, fifth-place Edmonton (2-7) is close behind, having won two straight.

Wilson said candidly he's not surprised with his production this season because no expects more from Wilson than he does. But he credits Bombers veteran quarterback Zach Collaros with helping accelerate his transition to Canadian football.

"That's also a good thing about being a rookie and coming in having a great veteran quarterback to learn from," Wilson said. "Our relationship has grown since I've been here.

"Zach often texts me, sends me stuff like how I feel about this route and stuff like that, which is good."

However, being a receiver in Winnipeg's offence means more than just catching passes from Collaros. The ground attack is a big part of the Bombers' gameplan as running back Brady Oliveira was the CFL's top rusher last year (1,534 yards) and is tied with Toronto's Ka'Deem Carey (both 611 yards) for the league lead this season.

"I definitely love the run game and just trying to get physical and get my hands on guys," Wilson said.

Something Wilson has noticed in the CFL is there's a lot less physical contact between receivers and defensive backs at the line of scrimmage compared to south of the border. However, he can understand why given the longer, wider field and potential for a big play should the receiver break free from the press coverage.

"They (defensive backs) don't really get as physical and don't get hands on you so when you're in your route you can often run it kind of free," he said. "Definitely, you've got to respect peoples' speed, especially with the waggle."

Sunday's contest begins an interesting stretch for Winnipeg, with five of its next six games coming against West Division opponents. After hosting Hamilton on Aug. 23, the Bombers will have their annual Labour Day home-and-home series with Saskatchewan then return from a bye week for a home-and-home matchup with Edmonton.

But Wilson said neither he nor the Bombers are looking that far ahead.

"We're coming off a win but we're not going to let that define our season," he said. "It's cliche, I know, but we're just trying to 1-0 each week and win each week.

"As for me, I wouldn't say the weight of expectation is heavy because I have high expectations of myself. I have my own confidence that also feeds off of other players."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 12, 2024.