Several players have become fathers
This is the best moment in my life by far. It beats the Grey Cup, it beats anything else I’ve done.
Through tumultuous days, where the COVID-19 pandemic threatens much more than just a football season, several Ottawa Redblacks have found comfort and happiness in fatherhood — lovingly clutching their newborns and staring into the tiny eyes of innocence has been a joyful distraction.
More than just playmakers, the Redblacks are obviously also baby makers.
Offensive lineman Nolan MacMillan, defensive lineman Ettore Lattanzio, receiver Brad Sinopoli and defensive back Antoine Pruneau have become daddies since the Redblacks’ disappointing 2019 season ended Nov. 1. (There were also two births in December — son Luca was born to defensive lineman Nigel Romick and his fiancé Melissa Lamb, while offensive lineman Jason Lauzon-Seguin and wife Katelyn had a baby boy — Harvey).
All members of the Redblacks team that won the Grey Cup in 2016, the players have found something that’s even bigger than football — being a parent.
“This is beyond everything, the Grey Cup win isn’t even close,” Lattanzio said.
“Nothing can compare to the birth of your child, this is a whole different level. It’s a true watershed moment. These moments are not distinguished by awards, medals or trophies and they’re not out there for the public to see, it’s an internal change that you feel. The people that are the best at it are the ones that embrace it. That’s what separates the men from the boys. I’m sure my wife would say being a mother is the most important thing in her life now; for me, it’s being a father.”
Redblacks players become happy daddies
Here’s a look at the new daddies, their wives or girlfriends and their babies:
ETTORE LATTANZIO
Lattanzio and his wife Julie celebrated the birth of their baby boy, Rosario Luca Lattanzio, a bit more than a week ago — April 9.
The child, 7 lb., 4 oz. at birth, was named after Lattanzio’s father Rosario, who died four years ago.
“I say I didn’t care one way or the other as long as the baby was healthy, I wanted to be neutral,” said Lattanzio, who’s 29. “But I guess I was on Team Boy. In the back of my mind, I was thinking it would be great to have a boy, first just because if I could name him after my father, I didn’t have to worry if the next one was going to be a boy or girl. When he popped out, all I saw were balls and he started pissing everywhere. I’m like, ‘It’s a boy! It’s a boy!’ It was such an incredible feeling.
“I was always going to name my first son after my father, even before he passed. (My dad) was named after my great-grandfather. I was named after (my dad’s) father. It was something that I wanted to keep alive. My grandparents were so ecstatic. My grandmother said to me, ‘Someone took my Rosario away and brought back another one.’ She’s so over the moon right now. An event like this, it’s happy, but there’s also some sadness because my father isn’t here to experience it. We feel that he’s around and he’s looking down on us. He’d be proud.”
Ironically enough, the child was born on the ninth day of the fourth month — Lattanzio’s jersey number with the Redblacks is 49.
“His hair is a bit lighter than me, but he’s almost my spitting image,” Lattanzio said. “He’s strong. Try changing his diaper and he’s kicking you away.”
It was more than 60 hours from Julie’s first contraction to the birth.
BRAD SINOPOLI
Sinopoli’s wife Laura gave birth to a son, James Archer Sinopoli
March 24 at the Ottawa Hospital General Campus (Dr. Glenn Posner, who did the delivery, is a Redblacks fan) — he was 8 lb., 13 oz.
So why the name? Explained Sinopoli: “For some reason, when we said it, it just all seemed to fit.”
The experience was surreal for the 32-year-old Sinopoli, who said: “There was like an eight-second pause between the time he was born and when he started crying. At around six seconds, Laura said to me, ‘I don’t hear him crying.’ As soon as she said that, the first cry came out and it was the greatest thing I’ve ever heard.
“It’s hard to put into words the emotion I was feeling. There were tears of joy. You see him start kicking when he’s in the womb, then you start to get everything prepared. But nothing compares to the moment you first see your child. It’s obviously the best experience of my life.
It’s a moment and feeling — it’s hard to replicate something like that. I can see my hair pattern, I don’t know if that’s good or bad, but there’s a little bit of fuzz. He seemed so small, but his hands are huge.”
ANTOINE PRUNEAU
Charles Henri Pruneau was born at the Montfort Hospital March 8 to Pruneau and his girlfriend Laurence Lavoie — he was a tallish 7 lb., 8 oz.
The 30-year-old Pruneau wanted to name the baby Normand, but got outvoted.
“Everyone in her family, everybody in my family hated the name,” Pruneau said. “So I made a concession, I made a deal with my girlfriend — I wouldn’t have to change a diaper if he’s called anything other than Normand. But that didn’t last for very long, I’m changing diapers.”
Pruneau added with a laugh:
“It sounds almost like a king’s name so that’s not bad. Hopefully he will hate it and change it to Normand when he gets older. When I’m taking care of him and Laurence is sleeping, sometimes I call him Normand.”
That feeling that goes with being a father isn’t lost on Pruneau, who’s absorbing every wonderful moment of it.
“It’s life-changing. It’s hard to put into words, but it’s an awesome feeling ... really, really special,” he said. “This is the best moment in my life by far. It beats the Grey Cup, it beats anything else I’ve done. This is a special project, something me and Laurence did together — it’s amazing. It also brings us a lot of positivity. When we’re talking with our families, it’s fun to be able to talk about something positive and not what’s going on around us in the world.”
NOLAN MACMILLAN
Daughter Camilla Ann was born to MacMillan and his wife Elisa Nov. 21, nine weeks premature, with an emergency C-section at the Ottawa Hospital’s Civic Campus. She remained in the hospital for a month, where she got “outstanding care” in the neonatal unit.
Said MacMillan, who’s 29: “They whisked Elisa away, the next thing I knew they were saying, ‘Do you want to meet your daughter?’ It was very amazing. I’ll never forget it, for sure. This has to be at the top (of things I’ve done). It’s a life-changing thing, a big commitment and responsibility for my wife and I. Family is so important. We both take family very seriously, that’s why we’ve gotten along so well with each other and decided to be together.”
Camilla is now more than 12 pounds after being 3 lb., 5 oz. at birth.