A rising football star from Ottawa is projected to be one of the top picks in this year’s NFL draft. Akheem Mesidor, 25, is expected to be selected in the first round of Thursday’s draft, an honour reserved for only the best collegiate football players. “I’m very excited. I can’t wait, it’s been a long process,” Mesidor told CTV News Tuesday. “I’m just waiting for my name to get called.” Mesidor is a standout defensive lineman at the University of Miami and helped propel his team to the College Football Playoff National Championship game this year, where he recorded two sacks. When he was first learning the game of football, Mesidor didn’t see the NFL as a reality for his playing career. But when he made the jump to college, a switch flipped for him. “I always focus on the next step. In high school it was, what’s the next step? College. And then once I got to college, all right, the next step is the National Football League. What gives me confidence is that there were people that I played with and played against who were going to the National Football League, and I’m like, man, if he can do it, why can’t I?” But despite learning from top coaches like Jason Taylor at the University of Miami, Mesidor credits his time in Ottawa for shaping the player he has become. “It was Gridiron Academy that really helped me and built that foundation,” he says of the program run by Victor Tedondo. “Coach Vic, he doesn’t just coach you and teach you how to play football, he builds that mental mindset. You know, toughness, character, all these different things that you can’t really teach, you have to build it.” Tedondo says he first saw Mesidor play football when he was just eight years old as a coach for the opposing team. He recalls seeing a young man who would not give up despite his team losing by a large margin. “I knew from the get-go that he was special,” said Tedondo, the owner and founder of Gridiron Academy. “He’s the type of guy that loves football. When you put a combination of the love of the game, the passion for the game and hard work, put all that together, I think the sky’s the limit.” Tedondo describes Mesidor as undersized for his position but says his maturity and understanding of the game is what has pushed him into a first round draft spot. “One thing’s for sure, this guy can be all-pro. And just like his mentor, Jason Taylor, at the University of Miami, this guy one day can be a hall of famer and I truly believe it.” Mesidor says he did not watch much NFL growing up but likens his game now to star defender Trey Hendrickson of the Baltimore Ravens. The 25-year-old says his favourite team is the Pittsburgh Steelers but will be realizing his dream no matter which team selects him. “As long as it’s a team that plays to my strength, it doesn’t matter.”
