6/17/2007 10:36:36 PM
1st Wave

I’ve never gotten used to the cuts, it’s just not natural to me. Some guys keep their distance from the rookies so that they don’t get too attached to them which makes it easier to deal with on cut down days, but I’m not sure that really works because in this league, it could be a vet just as easily as it could be a rookie…especially with the new salary cap. I make it a point to lend myself to the rookies, for a couple of reasons. One is that you meet some great guys that way, and the other is that some of these young men will be on the team in a matter of weeks. Then they won’t be rookies anymore because we’ll be relying on them to perform like vets in each game, so you’ll want them prepared for fire. I haven’t much to lend to them, but when you’re far away from home, chasing a dream, against impossible odds like those present in the CFL, I think it’s natural to want to hear somebody shoot you straight. You’d want someone to show you the best way to achieve that dream for you, and if they had any insight from personal experience that could be beneficial to you…you’d be all ears.
When I think back to my rookie experience 7yrs ago as well as my rookie experience in the NFL in 2002, I remember all the pros and the cons. I remember both sides of the coin, the vets that took me under their wing like Travis Moore, Aubrey Cummings, Santana Moss, Wayne Chrebet, and Donald Driver. And I also remember the vets that would conspire against me and try to bring light to any mistakes I may make to the coach in meetings, or how they would tell me the wrong routes to run as I break the huddle with them…laughing as I caught the wrath of the coordinator. I always told myself if I was blessed enough to make my way in this game for a while, I would help anyone who asked it of me as best that I could. I can honestly say that I take pride in the fact that I’ve kept to my word in that regard, and have been a source of information and support for younger players that have come after me, even those that are in turn coming for my job. A player confident in his abilities doesn’t shy away from competition, young or old in my opinion. As a competitor you certainly don’t want to beat out a handicapped opponent, so it only makes sense to try to equip the rookies with as much information as they can process and then may the best man win. And at the same time, you come to find out wonderful stories about these men that come from all walks of life and all parts of the world to come and chase the same dream that you’ve been living.
Like the baseball star that laid the bat down to follow his passion and put the pads on that asked me, “Will you teach me how to be a pro?” Or take perhaps the roommates from New Orleans, who are linked by the same traumatic natural disaster. One of them calls me “coach Kamau” on a daily because he says he learns something new from me all the time. The other had the misfortune of injuring an ankle in the pre-season all but nullifying an otherwise stellar camp, and I could see it in his eye on the sidelines as I consoled him when he got his prognosis that he knew his fate was sealed. The pain setting in already with the realization that upon his release, his particular journey homeward would place him back into the even more stressful situation that many who were struck by Hurricane Katrina are still dealing with everyday.
I’ve got to believe that the coaches and powers that be will put together the best team to give us a chance to be successful in this ultra-competitive league, and honestly I do believe that. By the same token…it never gets easier for me.
Bless those whose dream ends here. ©