Als’ rookie tailback Stanback motivated to overcome failure
Powerful runner owns his mistakes and is determined to restart football career
Would things have evolved differently for William Stanback had he simply played by the rules and not succumbed to the immaturity of youth?
It’s a hypothetical question he’ll never be able to answer. But he said he realizes things don’t always happen as one believes they might; that one’s best success comes after their greatest disappointment, he once tweeted.
Stanback, a rookie tailback trying to make the Alouettes’ roster, was dismissed from the University of Central Florida — the only Division I school that offered a full scholarship — in 2015, for “continuous failure to comply with athletic policy or team rules.”
Stanback failed multiple drug tests after smoking cannabis. He has admitted to his transgressions, isn’t shy to discuss his history and won’t run away from his past.
“It was just me being immature, hanging out with the wrong crowd and not following directions and rules. I can’t blame anyone but myself. I let my parents, family and the fans I had down. I never want that to happen again,” Stanback said Thursday, following the fifth day of Alouettes training camp.
“I always think twice about the things I do, the action I take and being accountable,” he added. “I call it a stepping-stone. I think about this almost every day of my life.”
As a freshman for the Knights, playing in a backup role, Stanback gained 443 yards on 105 carries, adding 186 yards in receptions and scoring seven touchdowns. He also played on special teams.
Despite being injured in 2014, he dressed for 10 games, including seven starts, gaining nearly 700 yards while scoring 10 times. He rushed for more than 100 yards in three games.
But Stanback dressed only twice as a junior, gaining 11 yards on 12 carries. Following the team’s third game, one for which he wasn’t activated, Stanback was informed he was off the team and his scholarship was revoked. He was heartbroken.
“I failed. I wasn’t supposed to have off-field issues. I was supposed to be Will Stanback,” he said. “When I was dismissed, I knew it was my fault, nobody else’s. I’m the one who did what I did. I always think about that. I’m not going to let that happen again.
“I wasn’t thinking straight. Pick-ingup that product isn’ t the way to go. Don’t smoke marijuana. That’s my speech to the younger players.”
Even after his dismissal, Stanback couldn’t cut the cord and continued watching the Knights struggle, believing the team might have prospered had he remained clean. He felt he was at least partly responsible and knows he was the catalyst behind the negativity surrounding UCF.
Stanback returned to the field the following season, but his days of playing Division I were over. Instead, he went to Virginia Union, an NCAA Division II school in Richmond. Stanback was a oneman wrecking crew, rushing for 1,299 yards while scoring 18 touchdowns en route to multiple postseason honours.
But it was Division II.
At the NFL regional combine, he ran a 4.55 40, recorded 23 benchpress reps of 225 pounds, had a 34-inch vertical leap and completed the three-cone drill in 6.9 seconds — numbers that suggested the six-foot, 233-pounder could move well, especially laterally, for amanhissize.
Still, he was coming out of Division II, and Stanback wasn’t drafted. He signed with the Green Bay Packers, but was released before the Packers’ final exhibition game. The Als wanted him last season, but Stanback simply felt he wasn’t ready. He attended Seattle’s rookie mini-camp this spring, but wasn’t offered a contract. Finally, he was ready for the Canadian Football League.
It’s unlikely Stanback, or anyone else on the depth chart, will dislodge incumbent running back Tyrell Sutton, who is heading into his sixth season with the Als. But they need an import waiting in the wings in the event of an injury. Management wants that player to be big and physical; someone who will impose his will on defenders while being able to protect the quarterback.
Stanback’s chances are as good as anyone’s, perhaps better.
“Protecting the quarterback is something he does well,” said André Bolduc, who coaches the Alouettes running backs. “The way he moves with his size is very impressive. He carries the ball extremely efficiently and reads well. And I mean, who’s going to tackle him when he passes the line of scrimmage ... defensive backs and safeties trying to tackle the big boy?
“Sutton runs hard. He’s a powerful back. He’s going to get hurt. You and I know it. We’re smart enough to understand that. The next guy has to have the same abilities, the same kind of game. We can’t change the offence. We need the same kind of back.”
At 23, Stanback is still young enough to believe he might eventually return to the NFL, but realistic enough to know there are worse places to play than the CFL. While he waits to learn his fate, Stanback wants the coaches to know he’s dependable and reliable.
“I can protect the quarterback, and I want the coaches to know that,” he said. “I’m here to help. I want us to be successful and win games. I like my chances and feel confident with these guys.”
I knew it was my fault, nobody else’s. I’m the one who did what I did. I always think about that. I’m not going to let that happen again.