The Hamilton Tiger-Cats might have to wait a bit for Malick Meiga but, by investing a second-round draft pick in the big wide receiver, they’ve indicated they’re willing to do exactly that.
The 25-year-old from Montréal signed as a free agent with the Carolina Panthers directly after he went undrafted in the NFL and will attend practices with the team that regularly scouted him two hours down the road at Coastal Carolina University.
The long-limbed Meiga has a large catching radius—he’s 6-3 and weighs 200 pounds—and was easily the fastest receiver in Tuesday night’s CFL Canadian Draft.
Had he not already signed with the Panthers, he likely would have been chosen long before the Ticats invested a “futures” pick in him in Tuesday’s second round, 14th overall. Last year they weren’t in a position to use a high draft choice on a player who wasn’t an automatic same spring arrival at training camp.
“He’s very fast and was one of the best gunners (special teams downfield tacklers) in the draft. He was a special teams captain at Penn State before Coastal Carolina,” said Tom Flaxman, the Ticats’ Director of Canadian Scouting.
“We wish him all the best in his NFL journey.”
But they also hope an eventual leg of that journey will be north to Canada, maybe even this season. That would make a very deep Canadian receiving corps even deeper.
“I’m trying to do whatever I can to make the team in Carolina,” Meiga told Ticats.ca, “and I’m going to take advantage of the opportunity. But if that doesn’t work out, I’ve got a great family waiting for me back home; being drafted by the Ticats is a great opportunity.”
Meiga played high school and CEGEP (junior college) in Montréal before enrolling at Penn State, one of the all-time major influences in U.S. college ball. He then moved to Coastal Carolina, which plays in the Sun Belt Conference, where he played for two more seasons and caught 19 passes in 2025.
Among casual football fans, Coastal Carolina is often underrated but the Chanticleers are usually a force in the competitive Sun Belt Conference and finished third in their division last season.
“They’ve got great players, great coaches, great programs, and a good family-oriented atmosphere,” Meiga says.
The Ticats are aware of that atmosphere, and one-quarter of their 2026 draft class came from Coastal Carolina: they took defensive tackle Aamarii Notice in the seventh round and Notice will compete for a rotational depth spot on the interior line.
“He’s my guy, and I’ll definitely stay in touch with him,” Meiga says of his fellow Canadian.
Meiga attended a lot of Alouettes games at Molson Stadium before departing for the NCAA and said the wide CFL field is perfect for his skill set.
“It’s a lot of space to work with and I have the speed to take advantage of it,” he says confidently. “When I get on the field I’m usually the fastest player; I don’t think anybody can run with me offensively or on special teams.”
And if he does get to Hamilton, there’ll be another slice of South Carolina waiting. Bo Levi Mitchell, who likes big targets, makes his off-season home in the Palmetto State.
“He’s a great quarterback, and it’d be a great situation to work with him and help the team win some more.”
