Former Huskie feels Fajardo’s pain
Ex-quarterback Bilan recalls struggling with torn oblique in ’04 Vanier Cup run
Cody Fajardo’s oblique injury brought back unpleasant memories for former University of Saskatchewan Huskies quarterback Steve Bilan.
“When I first heard what happened to him, I was thinking ‘Oh no,’ because what are the odds?” Bilan said from Saskatoon. “Mine happened before a big playoff game and it’s not a good injury for a quarterback to have.”
Fajardo — the Saskatchewan Roughriders’ No. 1 quarterback — injured an oblique muscle during a closed practice Oct. 30.
In 2004, Bilan was in the midst of an all-canadian CIS (now U Sports) season before tearing his right oblique muscle during a Huskies practice.
Although the severity of Fajardo’s oblique injury isn’t known, he has said that he felt a stabbing feeling that was so intense that it brought him his knees.
Similarly, Bilan also felt like he had been stabbed when he tore his oblique muscle while attempting a pass.
“I could barely breathe or take deep breaths,” Bilan recalled. “Even walking was a struggle as I was trying to throw a football.
“I tried to throw once, just to see if I could. I almost puked because the pain was so intense. I knew then that I couldn’t do it. You don’t realize how much you use your oblique until you can’t,” Bilan said.
Bilan tore his oblique before the Huskies embarked on a monthlong playoff run that ended with a 7-1 loss to the Laval Rouge et Or in the Vanier Cup.
He had been sidelined for two early Canada West post-season games and, thanks to 12 injections of a freezing compound, completed 20 of 34 passes for 254 yards and a touchdown in the Huskies’ 31-16 win over the Saint Mary ’s Huskies in the Mitchell Bowl, earning a trip to the Vanier Cup.
Despite having the oblique frozen for the national final, Bilan completed only 11 of 33 passes for 133 yards, with five interceptions.
“It felt better in the Mitchell Bowl than it did in the Vanier,” the 41-year-old Bilan recalled. “It just never felt normal. It felt like I had the arm to throw, but not the torso or body to actually steer my throw.”
The freezing reduced the pain, but there were side-effects.
“I couldn’t feel my midsection at all and I had no idea where my body and legs were in space,” Bilan added. “As a quarterback, you have to be able to step into your targets and that means planting your feet and throwing.
“I could tell where my feet were, but I had no idea where my hips were. I couldn’t put it all together, let alone generate any power from my hips or core. I had to step into it and just arm-throw it.”
Bilan said another reason for his struggles was his inability to practise leading up to the championship game because the injury couldn’t be numbed on a daily basis.
“I basically watched game film and tried to do my best to prepare,” he said. “When you start playing teams like Saint Mary’s or Laval without any reps or practice, it wasn’t easy to get through it.”
Bilan also dealt with the mental aspects of the injury, in addition to the physical pain, during a season in which he led the country with 25 touchdown passes and 2,549 aerial yards.
“You’re angry with yourself because you can’t throw,” Bilan said. “Then there is that emotion, because it’s the playoffs and you don’t want to disappoint your team.
“You also have the mindset that there is no way that you’re not going to play, because I came all this way. You know that can’t do things 100 per cent, but you try to accommodate it as much as you can,” said Bilan.
Fajardo has vowed to do whatever it takes to play in Sunday’s West Division final against the visiting Winnipeg Blue Bombers. Bilan, however, has a pretty good idea of what Fajardo will experience Sunday.
“Are you ready to play?” Bilan said. “No, definitely not at full strength, unless they try to freeze him up to get him out there. It will affect his accuracy, for sure. Whether it’s tear or a strain, he still can’t generate the power that he needs.”