Cadwallader ‘just a real glue guy’

Tanner Cadwallader was trying to simplify a process that is anything but simple.

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers special-teams ace found himself in the spotlight this week after his blocked punt played a pivotal role in a 44-28 victory over the Montreal Alouettes.

“It’s something you’ve got to be eyes wide open on,” said Cadwallader, whose Bombers face the Saskatchewan Roughriders in the Labour Day Classic on Sunday in Regina.

“You really want to take the ball off the punter’s foot. You don’t want to be reaching for it when it’s in flight or anything like that. It’s just hitting your target. Knowing where your target is, knowing where that foot is going to be and then going out and finding it and trying to be on time.”

Plays like this don’t happen by accident, they require precision — and that’s a quality Cadwallader has shown on numerous occasions over his six season with the Bombers.

A seventh round pick of the Bombers in 2020, Cadwallader is up to 75 special teams tackles in 97 games and has done his part to earn a reputation he takes an immense amount of pride in.

“Well, he’s the hardest worker in the building,” said Bombers punter Jamieson Sheahan. “He pays attention to detail, he’s here on the off days, he’s leading the meetings on special teams.

“He’s a guy that puts in a lot of work and then it was really nice for it to show up on that play on the weekend. Not a surprise to anyone because of how much time he puts in. Just a real glue guy.”

Some research done by Sheahan during a post-game discussion with Alouettes punter Joseph Zema led to a revealing discovery.

“He said it was the first blocked punt of his career. No one had ever blocked a punt off him before and he’s played 10-plus years,” said Sheahan. “He’s a good punter and he gets it off pretty quick, so we knew we had to be good. They had a different (long) snapper in and had some different changes in their personnel. We thought that if everyone did their job, someone was going to get home.

“They left Tanner (free) and Tanner did a fantastic job. He got off the ball really well and made a great play.”

Although he’s not one to seek the spotlight, Cadwallader was on the receiving end of praise from teammates and members of the coaching staff this week.

“He’s the hardest worker in the building.”

“It’s funny. I can remember his first training camp, when I was still a player,” said special teams coach Mike Miller, known as one of the best special teams players in CFL history. “You just saw the way that he was studying. He was in his playbook, for defence and special teams. The way he worked pre- and post-practice. He just really embraces his role and it obviously shows with the way that he produces on the field.”

Cadwallader pays careful attention to several players around the league as a way to help him stay sharp in that constant push to keep improving.

“He’s very evasive. He knows how to get off blocks, he’s a physical player and he’s hard to block,” said Miller. “His natural athletic ability carries him through, but his want to, his buy-in and how he makes his teammates better probably pushes him over.”

The blocked punt that was recovered by David Reese at the Alouettes one-yard line and led to a Bryce Perkins rushing touchdown wasn’t the only prominent play made by Cadwallader last week.

He was also quick to scoop up a loose ball after Bombers returner Trey Vaval fumbled the opening kickoff.

“Yeah, unfortunately that was my blocking assignment that made contact (with Vaval),” he said. “That’s why I was so close to (the loose ball). I’m kicking myself for not doing a better job on the block and Trey taking that hit. The recovery is just seeing the ball loose on the ground.”

The road to becoming a special teams demon has been both interesting and circuitous.

Cadwallader began playing football at the age of eight after his godfather, former CFL receiver Dom Vetro, helped him get onto his older brother’s team.

Cadwallader was a quarterback in high school and played wide receiver when he began his USports career with Western University.

“He’s an extremely gifted athlete who has a nose for football, a knack for it.”

He transferred to Wilfrid Laurier for his final three seasons of USports and then had an excellent season in the Canadian Junior Football League with the London Beefeaters, with a pit stop suiting up for the Bologna Warriors in the Italian Football League.

Though he’s listed as a linebacker, he’s also played defensive back and safety at various points along the way.

“It’s just about showing up every day, enjoying what you do and just putting everything into it,” said Cadwallader, who helped the Bombers capture the Grey Cup as a rookie in 2021. “This part of the game, there’s not much recognition in it. It’s about how much you love the game and it’s an opportunity to win (a battle) against a guy in front of you.

“Try to play physical all the time and play good football for the sake of doing the job rather than thinking you’re going to have a good first down celebration or anything like that.”

Being versatile is one thing, but Cadwallader takes that to the extreme.

“The first thing you realize is how athletic he is and how he understands the game and can play multiple positions on both sides of the ball or in all three phases,” said Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea. “When he was a 7-on-7 guy, I believe he was a quarterback and garnered a few lofty nicknames with how talented he was. He runs around in practice and runs the scout team offence and he’ll regularly run routes and make great catches when the defence is trying to stop him.

“He can do a lot of different things. He’s an extremely gifted athlete who has a nose for football, a knack for it and you can see it from a bunch of different angles in three phases, which is pretty cool.”

Friday’s game was an emotional one for Cadwallader as it came on what would have been his father’s 75th birthday.

Finch passed away from bladder cancer in April, nearly nine years after his mother Delia lost her battle with cancer.

“Losing a parent isn’t easy,” he said. “I don’t know if it gets easier. Having lost my mom years ago, I still think about my mom all the time. I miss her and now with my dad being more recent.

“That was before training camp kicked off, so I needed to get my head square before coming into camp.”

Cadwallader has a picture of his dad in his locker as a reminder of the support he’s provided over the years.

“It’s just one of those things,” said Cadwallader. “He’s with me everywhere I go.”

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