Travis Lulay was ranked No. 49 in last year's CFL Top 50 Players list; a Grey Cup MVP and Most Outstanding Player award equaled a steep climb up the rankings for the 28-year-old BC Lions QB.
Lulay ranks No. 1 in this year's edition of the CFL Top 50 Players list. A year after guiding the Lions to a Grey Cup victory, the four-year veteran from Montana State received 19 of 25 first place votes to top the list.
Last year's No. 1 Anthony Calvillo fell to No. 3 on this year's list, his Montreal Alouettes teammate Jamel Richardson leapfrogging him for the No. 2 spot.
Richardson and Calvillo were the only members in last year's top 10 to once again make it this year.
The top five was rounded out by another Alouette, RB Brandon Whitaker at No. 4 and last year's Most Outstanding Defensive Player Jovon Johnson of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers at No. 5.
Calgary Stampeders' RB Jon Cornish was the only unranked player from last year's list to crack the Top 10, coming in at No. 10. The Canadian took over for longtime Stamps' RB Joffrey Reynolds in the starting lineup, rushing for 863 yards and nine touchdowns.
A total of 16 newcomers made the list this year, including Cornish. Two BC Lions, OL Jovan Olafioye and DT Khalif Mitchell were the next highest rated fresh faces, coming in at No. 14 and No. 16 respectively.
The Lions had the most players of any team to make the Top 50 with 13, followed by the Alouettes with eight and the Hamilton Tiger-Cats with seven.
The list was compiled from votes by a group of 25 experts which included TSN commentators and analysts and several league writers from across Canada.
