Grothe to test knee during workout for CFL’s Hamilton Tiger Cats on Saturday

Posted Mar 19, 2010 by Scott Carter

Updated Mar 19, 2010 at 11:55 AM

Former USF quarterback Matt Grothe will participate in an invitation-only workout for the Canadian Football League’s Hamilton Tiger Cats on Saturday.

Former USF receiver Amarri Jackson, cut from the Bucs last summer, will also work out for the Tiger Cats.

Hamilton head coach Marcel Bellefeuille and general manager Bob O’Billovich will attend the workout session at Lakeland Christian School. Tiger Cats southeast regional scout Danny McManus, who spent 17 seasons in the CFL after a stellar career at Florida State, said Grothe’s skill-set matches the CFL’s style of play.

“It’s perfect for him,’’ McManus said Friday. “He moves around and makes plays. The biggest thing you want to see is his arm strength, because our field is a little bit bigger. We’ll test him on some throws to see where that is.’’

McManus started scouting Grothe heavily when Grothe was a junior and continued to monitor him after Grothe suffered a season-ending knee injury in USF’s third game last season. Grothe has maintained an intense rehab schedule since the knee injury and is expected to be able to go full-strength on Saturday.

Hamilton owns the CFL negotiating rights to Grothe. McManus said 45 to 50 players have been invited to the workout, and that Bellefeuille and O’Billovich have watched film of all the players.

“They want to see where he [Grothe] is at in his rehab and throwing the football,’’ McManus said. “The eyeball test is important for a player coming off an injury.’’

The Tiger Cats currently have four quarterbacks on the roster, including former Boston College player Quinton Porter and Illinois State’s Kevin Glenn.