Hamilton a homecoming of sorts for Castillo

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 14/09/2023 (766 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Sergio Castillo’s career was finally taking off when disaster struck.

“It was Oct. 6, 2017,” said Castillo, quickly recalling the exact date.

After being handed his walking papers by the Atlanta Falcons, Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Ottawa Redblacks, Castillo found a home with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. The kicker from Amarillo, Texas, was handling all three kicking duties for the Ticats when an unlucky play in a Week 16 meeting at IG Field against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers derailed everything.

“I missed a 31-yarder, and as soon as it came off my foot, I took off. Back in the day, I used to run and try and make tackles, but not no more,” said Castillo, 32, who’s now with the Bombers and currently second in the CFL in kicking percentage (93.5), after Thursday’s closed practice.

“I remember seeing Moe Leggett returning the ball. He was five yards away and cut to my left. I planted and I knew right away something was off.”

Castillo tore his ACL in his kicking leg. The Ticats released him in the offseason and he went 618 days without a professional contract.

“I counted. Every day I printed out a contract, NFL, CFL, and I’d just change the date, change the team, and I would practise my signature,” said Castillo. “I know the positive emotion that signing a contract creates. So, if I could create that positive emotion every day before I went to workouts, before I started my day, it was going to get my mind right.”

That’s a lot of printer ink.

“Well, fortunately my wife is a school teacher, so I just printed it out at the school,” laughed Castillo.

Even though Castillo’s time in Hamilton came to a crashing halt, it’s still a place that means a lot to him. It’s where he got his first big opportunity, and it’s also where he had the game of his life at the 2021 Grey Cup when he drilled five field goals to help the Bombers outlast the Ticats in overtime to win their second consecutive championship.

The Bombers (10-3) and Castillo return to Hamilton on Saturday to take on the Ticats (5-7) at 3 p.m. CT.

“At the end of my career, hopefully it’s another 8-10 years, (I’ll remember my season in Hamilton) as one of the chapters that helped me learn about perseverance and about myself,” said Castillo.

“Obviously, you never want to get hurt, but it is what it is. I grew and learned a lot from it.”

“(Hamilton’s) got a warm place in my heart. I still have a lot of friends there.”

Seven teams across four different leagues later, Castillo is back in Winnipeg for his third stint with the club. He’ll be reacquainted with the individual he replaced, Canadian Marc Liegghio, on Saturday. The Ticats signed Liegghio in mid-June shortly after the Bombers released the Woodbridge, Ont., product.

Liegghio has connected on 26-of-31 field goals this season for a league-low 83.9 conversion per centage. After starting the year 18-for-18, the 26-year-old has had some struggles.

“We’ve kept in touch throughout the year. I’m happy he found a home, and real quick, too, right. He’s been making the most of it,” said Castillo. “He’s close to home, too. For specialists, the turnover rate is not very high. There’s not a lot of turnover here in the CFL. So, for him to get an opportunity, and quickly, I couldn’t be happier for him.”

Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea shared a similar sentiment about his former placekicker.

“We opened it up to a competition this year as we said in training camp and Sergio won. It was nice to see Marc get picked up because he is a good kicker,” said O’Shea.

“He’s a guy that can do all three if you ask him too. Except when we play him, I don’t mind rooting for him.”

Castillo had to overcome a lot of early disappointment as a pro to get where he is now. If Liegghio can learn to be more consistent, his story could possibly go down a similar path.

“If you look historically, it takes a long time for kickers and punters to break into the CFL. It really does. Some of these guys play for so darn long that there’s a lot of good people that get cut while they’re trying to find a job,” said O’Shea.

“Paul Osbaldiston was in B.C. behind Lui Passaglia and look at his career. Mike Vanderjadgt was cut a bunch of times, right? So, it does take time.”

taylor.allen@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @TaylorAllen31