Bringing the thunder from down under

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This article was published 17/05/2023 (867 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It can be comical watching a punter attempt to make a tackle.

Returners usually run by them — or through them — with ease.

If the Winnipeg Blue Bombers decide to roll with Australian Jamieson Sheahan at the position, they can be assured their last line of defence is in good hands.

“Yeah, that’s not going to be an issue. I tackled for the first 20 years of my life,” said Sheahan after Wednesday’s training camp session at IG Field.

Sheahan has played for the Bombers before, although it was the Essendon Bombers — a second-tier Australian rules football team.

“I was a defender by nature. I did a lot of intercepting. It was a bit of a hybrid defensive back/linebacker type role. It’s the only comparison that I can kind of make,” said Sheahan, who turned 26 on Tuesday.

“But then I also did the kicking. You pass the ball with your feet, and you try to kick it through the uprights. If anyone has time, they should jump on YouTube and have a look at some AFL (Australian Football League) highlights.”

He was, however, a fan of the NFL, more specifically the New York Giants, and college football, so when his Aussie rules days were over, he wanted to see how far he could make it punting pigskins.

The wheels were set in motion when he got a call from Prokick Australia — a program designed to help Australian talent punt and kick its way to an NCAA Division I program and eventually the pros. Twelve months later, he was punting at the University of California.

The NFL didn’t come calling after three seasons with the Golden Bears, but the Blue Bombers did, as they selected Sheahan eighth overall in the CFL Global Draft earlier this month.

Not bad for a guy who never played football until setting foot on campus.

“I was actually in the weight room at Cal. My phone was going off and I didn’t have great reception down there, so I had to jump outside and take the call from coach (Mike) O’Shea,” said Sheahan.

“It was an awesome moment. I was staying ready, staying in the weight room. We had chatted so I knew there was a chance of being drafted but didn’t know who that might be. It was great to get that call from Winnipeg.”

At Cal, Sheahan leaned on his background and would often roll out before punting. In a game against UCLA last season, the right footed Sheahan displayed his versatility after receiving a poor snap. After dodging a defender, he booted the ball 32 yards with his left foot.

Sheahan was on the pre-season watch list for the Ray Guy Award — awarded to the nation’s top punter — heading into his senior year.

“I look at it like a golf bag. I’ve got a number of different clubs in the bag that I can pull out at any different time,” he said.

The Aussie style doesn’t typically transition over to the pros, leading to NFL teams being reluctant to give him a shot. Sheahan had to prove to the Bombers he could also kick the conventional way with some impressive hangtime, so prior to the draft, he sent the team a video of him doing nothing but that for 20 minutes straight.

He clearly passed the test.

“I was a little disappointed not to get a rookie minicamp invite down in the NFL. Coming out of college football in America, you want to get onto an NFL roster,” said Sheahan.

“All the feedback for me was I didn’t spiral enough. I didn’t hit the traditional ball enough because we did the roll out at Cal and hit the Aussie style. So, for me, this is a great opportunity to play professionally, live in another country, and put on the film that traditional spiral.”

Sheahan finds himself in the most competitive position battle in all of camp. He must out duel incumbent Marc Liegghio, a third-year Canadian who was average at best last season, and Karl Schmitz, a 36-year-old from Bermuda who had several NFL tryouts years ago, to win the starting gig. American punter Devin Anctil of Kansas State was released early Wednesday.

“He’s a good guy and he’s a very good punter. He really does stretch the field a little bit with his leg,” said O’Shea of Sheahan on Wednesday.

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“But what really is interesting with the Aussies is they can really place the ball very effectively. So, he puts the ball where he’s supposed to the majority of the time.”

While Sheahan never expected football to take him to Winnipeg, he’s excited to be here and compete at something he loves to do.

“I thought I’d play professional football, but I thought that would be in Australia. But you know, you’ve got to take the opportunities that come and I’m so grateful for the journey I’ve had so far.”

taylor.allen@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @TaylorAllen31

Taylor Allen
Reporter

Taylor Allen is a sports reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press. Taylor was the Vince Leah intern in the Free Press newsroom twice while earning his joint communications degree/diploma at the University of Winnipeg and Red River College Polytechnic. He signed on full-time in 2019 and mainly covers the Blue Bombers, curling, and basketball. Read more about Taylor.

Every piece of reporting Taylor produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.