As good as Jesse Lumsden was, in the end he became just another running back worn down by injuries.
Jesse (The Body) Lumsden had the potential to be somebody special in the Canadian Football League -- a Canadian playing tailback, which is a position routinely assigned to Americans -- but his body did not hold up to the wear and tear of the sport.
In the same way Canadian quarterbacks aren’t really given much of a chance to play in the CFL, let alone make the roster, Canadian running backs are usually backups to their American counterparts.
The difference is, a Canadian running back who can start is gold. He’s a ratio-changer because he fills one of the minimum seven starting spots for non-imports. Quarterbacks who are Canadian aren’t classified as non-import in the CFL, which allows teams to dress three pivots of any nationality.
Some teams are reluctant to start a Canadian at the feature running back spot because they don’t have an adequate backup. Lumsden was supposed to be that guy that broke the mould.
Unfortunately, injuries prevented that from happening. In the games he started for Hamilton in 2007 before injuries took their toll, he was breathtaking with his speed and strength. He led the league in rushing before suffering the first of several season-ending injuries.
In the end, his body broke down. He played only 13 games the last three years in stints with Hamilton, Edmonton and Calgary.
Lumsden announced his retirement on Tuesday -- sportsnet.ca alluded to it the week before -- so it is not surprising that he is hanging up his cleats.
He has a future representing Canada in bobsleigh, a sport that will be less taxing on his body because he won’t absorb the physical contact he did in football. Though he stood 6-foot-3 and weighed anywhere from 215 to 225 pounds and had virtually no fat on his frame, Lumsden simply couldn’t avoid injuries.
Critics suggested he ran too upright and exposed himself, but there were enough instances when he ran over opponents and accelerated with unbelievable speed for a big man that could refute that.
"At one time he was the best player in the league," noted just-retired defensive tackle Adriano Belli, who faced Lumsden enough times to make that assessment.
It could be said Lumsden was simply unlucky. His dad, Neil, had the body of a fullback, but managed to play longer in his career.
Jesse wasn’t as fortunate.
So much had been made of Lumsden because he dominated the Ontario university ranks, playing like a man among boys for McMaster University. He won the 2004 Hec Crighton Trophy as the top collegiate football player in the country.
Whatever he did made news, be it his pursuit of playing in the National Football League, his time with the Tiger-Cats, his signing with the Eskimos, then the Stampeders and then his retirement.
Jamall Lee, currently with B.C. and with virtually the same body size, speed and statistics that Lumsden has playing for Bishop’s in the Quebec Football Conference, never received the same national hype. Even now with the Lions, there isn’t the same drama that he might become the team’s starting tailback.
He was born in B.C., so if he ever became the Lions’ starter, it would be a great story on so many different levels. His dad, Orville, a non-import, played as a starting tailback and started off strongly in his career, winning rookie of the year honours in his first season, but injuries then took their toll.
The career of a starting running back isn’t that long due to the constant contact. The career of a starting Canadian running back is even less because they really aren’t given much of a chance to prove themselves.
Lumsden was supposed to be the exception to the rule, but in the end he became just another running back worn down by injuries.
Lumsden’s intensity, desire and heart served him through some frustrating times in his football career, refusing to give up even when it appeared it might have been the best course of action.
As a football player, his career is over and his career goals unfulfilled, but as an athlete he has proven ability in bobsleigh. He finished fifth for Canada in the two-man and four-man events in the 2010 Winter Olympics. If his body can avoid further injuries, he represents promise for Canada in the 2014 Olympics and beyond. He is still quite new to the sport, but now he can devote his full-time physical and mental energies to that sport. As an athlete who has dealt with a lot already – and some of it heartbreaking – and he has a new career ahead of him. He might achieve great things for Canada in a way he likely never imagined growing up as a football player.
All he needs to do is stay healthy.
