By Jared Book,
MontrealAlouettes.com
Montréal – Most rookies come into the CFL unpolished or “raw” in scout talk.
Montreal Alouettes defensive back Joel Wright was probably described as
that when the Alouettes took him in the fifth round in 2006 after his
only season playing the defensive side of the ball.
“Joel was one of the best athletes we had if not the best,” remembers
Gary Jeffries the head coach at Wilfrid Laurier University. “There was
nothing he couldn’t do. He was the holder on field goals, he returned
punts, he played special teams and he was the backup punter and kicker.”
Wright was a receiver for his first three years at Laurier, but into
the 2005 season, Jeffries looked at his team and saw a need for a
lock-down cornerback. He and his coaching staff decided to play Wright
at that spot.
“We tried to get the best players on the field. I don’t believe in
playing people both ways, but the situation called for it. He started
on defence and played some situations on offence.
Ironically, it was Wright’s best season at wide receiver and he was
named an OUA second-team All-Star in 2005. He made 21 catches for over
350 yards and five touchdowns in 2005, and on defence made 8.5 tackles
and intercepted one pass. Over his career as a receiver, he made 84
catches for 1,080 yards and 18 touchdowns.
But, it was in Laurier’s playoff run during which Wright really showed
his potential as a defensive back. He made 13 tackles, had three
knockdowns, recovered a fumble and had two interceptions returned for a
total of 23 yards as his team won the Vanier Cup.
The Alouettes took Wright as a defensive back and he has played mostly
special teams in his time in the CFL. Last year, he was released by the
Alouettes in May only to get a call in September to rejoin the team. In
his first game, he took home Montreal’s Special Teams player of the
game award.
“I’m more comfortable as a receiver,” Wright said. “There’s less
thinking to do because I’ve done it my whole life,” he said. “It was a
difficult transition to safety, but that’s the way the CFL is. You have
to get in where you fit in.”
