Small football world reunites old friends
Eskimos QB, Redblacks kicker met five years ago as NFL hopefuls
As a quarterback, Matt Nichols has made thousands of reads in his football career.
One of the most important reads the Edmonton Eskimos’ pivot ever made, though, was an off- field assessment for his friend, Ottawa Redblacks kicker Delbert Alvarado.
Nichols and Alvarado, opponents in Friday night’s game at TD Place, first met as rookies in the NFL, trying to crack the Dallas Cowboys’ roster in 2010. They were randomly paired together as roommates for about six months.
It was a short time, but long enough to form a strong bond.
“You go through so much together,” Nichols said of their shared NFL experience. “I remember days off, we were the only two going to the ( practice) facility when guys were going home.
“I remember doing extra work with him all the time, he was running routes for me and I was holding field goals for him, just trying to do anything we could to help each other make the team.”
The teamwork extended off the field, too, allowing for that allimportant signal read by Nichols.
It started when Alvarado burst into their apartment one night around midnight and woke Nichols up.
“I’m like ‘ Matt, wake up dude. You won’t believe how gorgeous this girl is,’” Alvarado recalled. “I just kind of went on and on and on about it.”
Alvarado had just met Fallon Taylor, a professional barrel racer, model and actress. He was enthused about her, but didn’t know how she felt. That’s where Nichols’ natural quarterback instincts kicked in. He met Taylor and made a crucial read for his friend.
“They hit it off. He said, ‘ The looks I’ve been seeing her give you, there might be a shot there. You need to go for it,’” Alvarado said. “He picked up on signs that maybe I didn’t, because I was the one going through it.”
On a double date with Nichols and his girlfriend ( and future wife) Ali, the emerging couple made it over a potentially awkward bridge.
Alvarado recalls: “We were at dinner with him and his wife Ali, sitting with another couple, and the girl asks, ‘ How long have you guys been dating?”
“I kind of look at ( Taylor), I grab my drink and take a sip and she’s like, ‘ Two weeks.’
“I go, ‘ Yeah, two weeks.’ I reached down and grabbed her hand, I looked at Matt and winked. That’s where it started. We were dating two weeks at that point, one thing led to another and a year later, I’m on a knee and that’s where we’re at now.”
Alvarado said months of shared meals, practice schedules and free time allowed his friendship with Nichols to form.
“Matt and I, I think it will be a forever- type bond,” he said. “Through happenstance or luck, he’s just my kind of guy.”
In the five years since Dallas, they’ve kept track of each other’s careers.
Nichols has supported Alvarado as he’s played for teams in the Arena Football League and United Football League, and then for Hamilton and Montreal in the CFL.
On the other end, Alvarado watched Nichols battle through two serious injuries. He was happy to see Nichols finally get an opportunity to start for the Eskimos last week with Mike Reilly sidelined with knee injuries.
They spoke briefly in Edmonton, but both were on tight schedules. Taylor came to Edmonton to see Alvarado play for the first time but Nichols had to get home to see his daughter, Elliot. The pair plan to catch up over dinner on Thursday night in Ottawa.
“He’s like a brother to me,” Alvarado said. “You start a journey like that with someone and you never forget it.”