Tiger Shanks Makes UNLV History As 5th Overall Pick In 2025 CFL Draft

There has been a ton of talk as of late about the 2025 NFL Draft, which took place last week, kicking off on Thursday and concluding on Saturday. However, there was another draft on Tuesday, and like Ricky White III in the NFL Draft on Saturday, a UNLV Rebels football player made history in it.

The 2025 Canadian Football League Draft took place on Tuesday, April 29, and former Rebels offensive lineman Tiger Shanks became the highest Rebel ever selected in the CFL Draft. The Montreal Alouettes selected him fifth overall in the first round of the draft. This makes him the sixth Rebel ever selected in the CFL Draft and the first since 2015. Prior to his selection, the highest a UNLV player had ever been picked in the CFL Draft was offensive lineman Brett Boyko, who went 14th overall in the second round of the 2015 CFL Draft.

Bonjour, Tiger Shanks! #CFLDraft pic.twitter.com/xJt2aZEWNt
— CFL (@CFL) April 29, 2025

Shanks is a 6'5, 325-pound lineman who primarily served as a right tackle during his days at UNLV. He was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, but played his high school ball at Lake Oswego High School in Lake Oswego, Oregon. He played 51 games in his career for the Rebels before graduating as a senior in 2024. As a senior, he was on both the Outland Trophy and Lombardi Award watch lists. The newest star on the Alouettes was also named First Team All-Mountain West in back-to-back seasons, becoming the first ever Rebels offensive lineman to earn the honor twice in a career.

The Alouettes kick off their season on June 6 against the Toronto Argonauts. That will be the UNLV faithful's first shot at seeing Shanks on a CFL field. The big tackle is expected to have a major impact on the team in hopes of leading them to win the Grey Cup.

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