From down and out to best in the league
Stamps’ Derek Dennis took rocky road to CFL’s top lineman award
As a newcomer to the Temple Owls, booed and berated, he learned first-hand about the legendary wrath of Philadelphia sports fans.
Kids waiting in the parking lot to throw rocks at the players. Folks racing onto the practice field to steal their footballs. Welcome to college.
His first taste of the professional game was no more appealing. An undrafted rookie at Miami Dolphins camp, his release was cruelly orchestrated for mass entertainment. On HBO’s reality show Hard Knocks — in the premiere episode of 2012 — he was followed, profiled, then discarded, all in front of a national television audience.
“Then it was kind of a downward spiral for me, man,” Derek Dennis said. “Ebbs and flows, ups and downs. I didn’t really know how my football career was going to pan out.”
He scuffled around, NFL practice roster to NFL practice roster — “For four years, I was off-on, off-on, off-on” — before joining the Arizona Rattlers of the Arena Football League.
Then, frustrated, dejected, he returned home to Queens, N.Y., last fall. Telling silence greeted him.
“I wasn’t really getting any phone calls — I didn’t hear from anybody,” Dennis said. “Two or three weeks went by. I was contemplating ending my football career and just getting a job and just getting into the regular life.
“And right when I was ready to do that? I got a call from my agent, saying that Calgary wanted me as soon as possible.”
His mother Lashanna, on hand for Thursday night’s awards banquet at the Art Gallery of Ontario, remembered well their conversation about the Stampeders.
“He said to me before he left, ‘Ma, I’m going to go up there and I’m going to become the top lineman in the CFL. All they have to do is let me on the field.’” Purposeful pause. “And here we are.” Yes, Dennis has been named the 2016 Most Outstanding Offensive Lineman, beating out Eastern finalist Jon Gott of the Ottawa Redblacks. He becomes the club’s third winner of the award, following Brett Jones (2014) and Fred Childress (1998).
Part of a patchwork line — only he and right guard Spencer Wilson suited up for all 18 regular-season dates — Dennis thrived at left tackle. As a group, they surrendered the fewest sacks in the league, 20. (The Montreal Alouettes, by comparison, permitted their passers to be trampled 64 times.)
“The only thing I had in mind was to come up here and work hard, bust my hump, create an opportunity for myself — and that’s what I did,” said Dennis, 28. “I’m just blessed. Super-appreciative, super-happy. And super-proud to be on a great team. I owe a lot to the city of Calgary and the Stamps for what they did for me and my life.
“At this time last year, I was almost done playing football. So for me to be in this position now? To be recognized as one of the top linemen in the CFL? It’s amazing.”
He admits the struggles — from being snubbed on NFL draft day to being marooned on practice rosters — chewed up his confidence.
The call from Calgary, with its forever-battered offensive line, arrived just in the nick of time.
He soon earned his spot, making five regular-season starts in 2015.
“For me, this was like my last chance to save my career and continue playing football,” said Dennis, 6-foot-3 and 341 pounds. “The way it unfolded? I couldn’t have planned it that way, man. I’m super-proud of myself. I’ve played for a lot of football teams. I’ve been around, from NFL to Arena to being up here, just bouncing around.” The final word goes to Mom. “He’s definitely a Cinderella story.”