Former Virginia Tech quarterback Bryan Randall is reportedly talking with the Canadian Football League’s Winnipeg Blue Bombers, this according to today’s edition of the Winnipeg Free Press. As best I can tell, this is not an April Fool’s Day joke either.

With the untimely collapse of the All American Football League, Randall is looking for another shot at playing professional football. Randall was the No. 2 overall pick in the January AAFL draft and was slated to compete for the starting QB job with Team Tennessee until the league unceremoniously “postponed” its inaugural season until 2009 so it could secure more investors.

Randall, the 2004 ACC Player of the Year, has bounced around NFL training camps for three years, but has yet to make an active roster and play a single regular season down. Though, he did look impressive in the Atlanta Falcons’ camp in 2006, but was the odd man out for the third QB spot, losing to hometown favorite D.J. Shockley from Georgia.

My impression of Randall has always been that while he does have certain athletic abilities that allow him to compete at a high level, he is just below the threshold needed to sustain an NFL career. However, his athleticism is not what led to his success at Virginia Tech, rather it was his intelligence and knowledge of the game. He is an extremely smart young man, on and off the field, and can read defenses very well. I think he would make an excellent fit in the CFL where Randall would have plenty of room to roll out, creating time to see plays develop and make something happen.

Even if the Blue Bombers sign Randall, he would still come in as the third-string QB and would have to compete for playing time behind incumbent start Kevin Glenn and Grey Cup (the CFL’s version of the SuperBowl) starter Ryan Dinwiddie. Apparently, Winnipeg has been following Randall since his playing days at Tech. According to the article, Bomber GM Brendan Taman said that Randall plans to explore his options with the Arena Football League, though that is not likely because their season has already started, and the NFL. Stay tuned!