Football player Jordan Matechuk has received a second chance to play professional football. The Canadian Football League’s Winnipeg Blue Bombers signed Matechuk to a contract this month. Matechuk, acting on the advice of his agent Fred Weinrauch, had sent a letter of apology and contrition to all the teams in the CFL after he was released from jail. He expressed his shame at being arrested for steroids. The Blue Bombers were the only CFL team to express interest in him.
The Blue Bombers were impressed by the “professionalism” in which Matechuk handled himself during his steroids arrest, conviction and sentencing. Winnipeg general manager Joe Mack explained the decision to sign Matechuk in a press release.
“Whatever Jordan has gone through in the past in his personal life doesn’t affect our decision to bring him in,” said Mack. “We feel everyone deserves a second chance and Jordan has demonstrated professionalism and honesty throughout this entire process.”
Matechuk was arrested with significant quantities of anabolic steroids during a secondary inspection while attempting to drive across the United States – Canada border in June 2011. U.S. Customs busted him with 26 vials injectable steroids, over 500 tablets oral steroids, dozens of syringes and needles and some marijuana for good measure.
The detour to the international border may have resulted from a wrong turn. Matechuk was transporting the steroids from one Canadian province to another. He wanted to drive from Alberta to (Hamilton) Ontario where he was a four-year veteran long-snapper for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats football team. But somehow he ended up at the International Bridge in Sault Sainte Marie (Michigan).
Matechuk pleaded guilty in a United States courtroom to one count each of steroid possession and marijuana possession in July 2011. He had faced up to two years in prison but was only sentenced to 90 days in jail. He was released early after serving only 60 days.
The Canadian Football League has largely avoided the hysteria that has engulfed professional sports in the United States. The CFL and Matechuk’s former team, the Hamilton Ticats organization didn’t seem too concerned about it. They dismissed it as an isolated incident and declined to conduct further investigations or additional steroid testing.
Last year, Matechuk told the Associated Press that the media misrepresented the facts surrounding the steroid incident. However, Matechuk has not publicly disclosed his side of the story.
Source:
Lefko, P. (February 14, 2012).Blue Bombers snap up Matechuk. Retrieved from http://www.sportsnet.ca/football/cfl/2012/02/14/lefko_blue_bombers_matechuk/
