Student will step in for teacher on defence
Lions’ Herdman must fill big hole left by the loss of Elimimian, writes Steve Ewen.
When Solomon Elimimian was coaching Jordan Herdman with the SFU Clan, neither undoubtedly ever fathomed we’d get to the point where we are now.
Herdman, a second-year B.C. Lion, is slated to get the start at middle linebacker in place of the injured Elimimian on Friday whentheLions(2-2)visitthe Ottawa Redblacks (2-2).
Elimimian, who is the cornerstone of B.C.’s defence, had surgery Monday for a non-fracture wrist injury. Lions coach Wally Buono wasn’t willing to offer up a timeline regarding a return to action for Elimimian, but the Lions are expected to put the four-time CFL all-star and 2014 CFL Most Outstanding Player on the six-game injured list when they declare their weekly roster Thursday.
Elimimian was listed as SFU’s linebackers coach in 2014, when Herdman was a redshirt sophomore with the Burnaby Mountain crew. Elimimian’s brother, Abe, was SFU’s defensive coordinator for that season, under coach Jacques Chapdelaine.
“It’s crazy how things work sometimes,” said Herdman, 23. “From him coaching me, to us playing together, to now getting an opportunity to take over his role. It’s amazing and I’m excited about it.
“I’ve learned a great deal from Solly. He coached me for that year at SFU back in the day. And just being a teammate and seeing how he prepares and his work ethic and how he hustles … I embrace it. I’ve learned so much from him and I think you’ll see that on game day.”
The Lions did seem to pickup some much-needed momentum with Saturday’s 20-17 come-from-behind win over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers at B.C. Place Stadium. It featured a key Elimimian stop of Winnipeg quarterback Chris Streveler on a third-and-goal from the B.C. twoyard line with Winnipeg up 17-0 early in the third quarter.
Now, the Leos head to Ottawa to face an accomplished running back in William Powell with Herdman, who is credited with two defensive tackles and 22 special-teams ones in his 22-game CFL career, pinch-hitting for Elimimian, a 31-year-old who has 745 tackles from his linebacker spot in his 118-game turn with theLions.
B.C. must make a go of it without one of its heart-and-soul guys, and Buono had a good spin on that, as you’d probably expect.
“Maybe it’s going to be good?” Buono said. “You know it’s like, ‘Let Solly do it, let Solly do it.’ Well guess what? Solly ain’t here, so he can’t do it. It’s time for the veterans to stand up. We’re a veteran team. It annoys me to see the mistakes.
“Leadership is something that’s internal. If one of your leaders goes down, somebody else has to got to step up.”
Herdman, who’s listed at six feet and 235 pounds, was one of the most celebrated players ever at Simon Fraser University. He was a two-time Great Northwest Athletic Conference defensive player of the year, and received a rookie mini-camp invite from the Kansas City Chiefs coming out of school.
He slipped in the 2017 CFL draft, with the Lions taking him in the seventh round, and Buono said at the time that “when you watch his tape, he’s a very good football player. When you look at his testing, he’s not going to blow your socks off.”
Herdman realizes this is a shot to prove he’s capable of being a front-line player.
“Me, personally … I’ve never had any doubts about myself,” said Herdman. “I had a great college career. I’ve been playing football my whole life. This is a great opportunity to show people that I can play at this level and I can play this game at a high level.”
Leadership is something that’s internal. If one of your leaders goes down, somebody else hastogotto step up.