MESSAM FEELING YOUNG AGAIN

Running back Jerome Messam spoke with Regina reporters on a conference call on Thursday, 24 hours after signing as a free agent for the 2018 CFL season.

Here are some comments from the session:


WHY SASKATCHEWAN?

JM: We were in discussions with three teams: Hamilton, Toronto and Saskatchewan. Honestly it just felt like home to me. I didn’t want to start over somewhere else. I was there in Regina, I felt at home and I didn’t want to leave (he was traded to Calgary in October of 2015). I was excited to get back and be part of what they’re building over there.


WHY DOES IT FEEL LIKE HOME?

JM: Just the atmosphere around football and the love I felt from the fans.  It’s just a very warm feeling in the locker room. I’m very comfortable with Jeremy O’Day and it was John Murphy who wanted me in Calgary and now he’s there. The talent that’s in the locker room, you can tell the organization is on the up and up. We struggled when I was there so it’ll be nice to come there and win.


WHERE DO YOU FIT IN?

JM: Hopefully to be the guy. I’m gonna go in there with the mentality of being the guy. I’m going to train and prepare for that. We’ve got some great backs like Trent Richardson and Marcus Thigpen. We’ve all got a lot of juice left. It’ll be a great training camp and I hope we all can make the team better.


HOW DID YOU FEEL ABOUT THE TRADE IN 2015?

JM: I was shocked. I didn’t see it coming at all but that’s just the business. Funny how things work out that I’ve got the chance to come back. For me, personally, I feel like there’s a lot of unfinished business there. We lost a lot of close games when I was there and we had coaching changes. A lot of things went wrong that season so it’ll be nice to get back and right the wrong.


HOW DO YOU FEEL AT 30-PLUS?

JM: It’s all about your mindset and how you approach your training. As far as the physical aspect goes, I still feel like I’m 25. Mentally, I put so much more time in in film study that it makes me that much more productive when I’m out on the field.


HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THIS O-LINE?

JM: I’m very familiar with Labatte and Clark. We just signed Bond. I don’t know how it’ll shape up but I’m confident in Chris Jones and how he’s going to build the team. If the whole team starts with the offensive line, they’ll build through there.


RP
@rodpedersen