Bombers’ German draft pick eager to prove he belongs

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This article was published 11/04/2019 (2342 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Thiadric Hansen was ready to hang up his football cleats for good at the end of the 2018 season, only to be swayed by a friend who convinced him to play one more year before calling it quits. Months later, the decision to push on has paid off in more ways than he could have ever imagined.

Hansen, a native of Flensburg, Germany, had just finished his seventh season with the Kiel Baltic Hurricanes of the German Football League (GFL). Though he was just 26 years old, the linebacker/defensive back felt he had hit his ceiling as a professional, and, with a serious job offer now in his grip, debated putting the sport behind him and entering a more traditional work life.

“Then out of nowhere,” started Hansen, speaking with the Free Press in a phone interview from his home in Germany, before pausing for a moment… “I didn’t even know it was a possibility to go to the CFL.”

On Thursday, Hansen received a serious jolt to his football future, as he was selected second overall by the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in the CFL’s first European player draft. The draft consisted of just one round, with nine players selected from a pool of 18 “global” athletes from Germany, France, Italy and Finland. It’s part of a global initiative by the CFL — dubbed CFL 2.0 — aimed at garnering interest overseas by recruiting players with potential to play in Canada. It’s the second draft the CFL has conducted in 2019 involving “global” players, with the first taking place in Mexico Jan. 14.

“It’s probably no different from the other players right now. I can’t really believe it, it’s kind of unreal,” Hansen said. “I probably need some days to really feel it, that I made it to the next step, to the CFL. It’s a dream come true. But I know it’s just the first step.”

Though it all happened very quickly, things didn’t exactly evolve overnight.

Hansen, now a member of the GFL’s Potsdam Royals, said he received a call from his head coach, at the recommendation of the president of the German national team, who told him he had been shortlisted to try out for a spot in the CFL combine. He had just two weeks to prepare and, after he received the good news that he had made it, was in Toronto just two weeks later.

The combine offered Hansen the chance to compare himself with other CFL prospects, with the hope of attracting the attention of a few scouts. His 38-inch vertical leap was the best among the other global players and third overall, tied with UBC’s Stavros Katsantonis.

It was during 1-on-1 drills where Hansen had his first interaction with Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea. Noticing that he wasn’t using his hands much, instead just bull-rushing on every rep he received, O’Shea shared a few words with Hansen.

“He just walked by me and said I had a hard head,” Hansen, who describes himself as a very physical player who is always looking for contact, said with a chuckle.

The two spoke again Thursday, shortly after Hansen was drafted.

“I think it’s going to be a challenge but I definitely think I can do it. It’s way more faster, and in the CFL there are a lot more passes than in the GFL. I already talked to the head coach and he told me that I am definitely going to have to work on speed because I need to cover a lot more ground as a linebacker. I’m starting to do that right and hopefully it goes over well.”

Hansen admits he has his work cut out for him, including getting used to the three-down game (in Germany they play American, four-down football rules). But he remains committed to earning his way onto a CFL roster, and he’s already well versed on what his best route to achieving what is a lofty feat. He’ll have his first chance when the Bombers open rookie camp on May 15.

“My main goal is to learn, adapt to the speed, get a roster spot… of course, my biggest goal is to be a starter,” Hansen said. “But I’m going to do it slowly. I know what it takes, making it first through special teams.”

He added: “So I will start with just being a teachable guy, learn a lot and then try to be very good scout guy or special teams guy, whatever they need. Then make my way to a starting spot, hopefully, one day.”

Whether a future in the CFL will ever come to fruition will only be revealed in time. In many ways, how successful Hansen is in the CFL will ultimately determine how successful the CFL’s global vision will be. And both sides are cautiously optimistic, prepared for progress to be slow.

But Hansen insists that what’s happened, even just over the last few months, has already created a noticeable buzz in Germany. Players who once only viewed the U.S. as a potential football destination — whether through Division I college scholarships or the NFL — are now researching ways to join the CFL.

“I’ve had a lot of people call me about how I made it and how I have a spot at the CFL combine. The CFL was never really on the radar for guys, because they thought the only way they are going to make it was go to some (U.S.) colleges,” he said. “Now, I see everybody watching some CFL highlights or looking at the CFL and finding out what it is and how they can get there. It’s definitely put CFL on the map, in Germany and all over the place.”

jeff.hamilton@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @jeffkhamilton