Augustine a hit with teammates

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This article was published 03/06/2018 (2705 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Getting pulverized by kids twice his size wasn’t all that appealing to Johnny Augustine when his friends urged him to give football a whirl.

The thrill of racking up touchdowns quickly tipped the scales.

“I started playing football in about Grade 6. I initially didn’t like it. Who wants to be brought to the ground?” the grinning 24-year-old running back from Welland, Ont., said Sunday morning.

“Honestly, my first game ever, I rushed for a crazy amount of yards and touchdowns, and that scoring feeling was amazing. It totally took over. I was like, ‘If I have to get hit to make plays, so be it. This is too much fun.’”

There was Augustine enjoying himself with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers on Friday night, scoring his first pro TD — albeit in a pre-season clash with the Edmonton Eskimos at Investors Group Field. His 18-yard ramble late in the second quarter boosted the Bombers’ lead to 19-10, and the hosts would eventually prevail 33-13 over, undeniably, a watered-down version of the Eskimos.

Still, there’s no reason to denigrate the effort of the former University of Guelph Gryphons standout, who finished as the game’s top rusher, carrying the ball eight times for 81 yards and a major score.

Crossing into the end zone felt mighty sweet, he admitted following practice at IGF.

“Scoring that touchdown and hearing the fans, and seeing the reaction of my teammates, it’s just the best feeling in the world,” he said. “But it’s a one-night thing. My mind right now is on the Lions. (Winnipeg’s second pre-season game in B.C. June 8)

“It was a great moment, but I have high expectations of myself because I’ve worked really hard for it. And coach (Mike) O’Shea and the coaching staff put us in a good position to be successful. I want to capitalize on that, and I want to play in this league for a long time, so it’s continuing to work on my craft, and fixing those things that I can get better at and executing them in the game.”

Uncut: Johnny Augustine finds a seam for the second score of the night. #ForTheW pic.twitter.com/4vUJdzDxUK

— WPG Blue Bombers (@Wpg_BlueBombers) June 2, 2018

Cracking Winnipeg’s roster, which already includes incumbent and league all-star and hometown hero Andrew Harris, along with international back Timothy Flanders and Kienan LaFrance, another Winnipegger, looks like a tall order for the diminutive Augustine, who’s listed at 5-9, 200 pounds.

But he’s used to beating long odds.

Perpetually underestimated because of his stature, Augustine played five seasons at the U of Guelph, rushing for 2,742 yards on 483 carries while scoring 28 TDs.

Despite being ranked 17th overall — and the highest-ranked running back — heading into the 2017 CFL draft, all nine clubs took a pass. He went back to school for his senior year, rushing for 690 yards and nine touchdowns while playing a big role on special teams.

After a brief stint with the Saskatchewan Roughriders, Augustine signed with the Bombers just before training camp.

Forgive him if it appears like he’s carrying the ball with a chip on his shoulder.

“When I play, people say it looks like I run pretty mad and stuff. I wouldn’t say a chip (on my shoulder). I know what has happened to me. If anything, it drives and motivates me to be the best I can be. And that’s what I’m trying do,” Augustine said.

“Last year (at the CFL combine), that’s one of the things people were knocking me for. It’s fine. It doesn’t matter. I’m here and I’m getting my opportunity. If I’m a certain height or a certain weight, it doesn’t matter. It’s how I play.

“It’s putting it all together. Since I started playing football, I was undersized, but I’ve always excelled. That’s why I work even harder.”

He isn’t just putting in the work when he’s on the field, he’s putting in hours of homework when he’s on the sidelines or away from the field.

“I’m a student of the game, a student of life. When I’m not taking physical reps, I’m taking mental reps every day. If (Harris) is taking reps and I’m behind him, I’ll watch what he’s doing. I’ll watch his footwork, I’ll watch his eyes. When I’m at home studying my playbook, I’m visualizing plays. Physical reps are huge, but it’s what you do off the field that sometimes matters most,” Augustine said.

“I’m not going to lie. One of the first things I thought about when I came here is I get to learn from Andrew Harris. What he does is what I want to do in my career, and I hope it’s in this Blue Bomber nation.”

O’Shea said Augustine’s performance against the Eskimos didn’t just energize the rambunctious IGF crowd.

Teammates were buzzing, too.

“You should have heard the bench. You could feel it when he was running the ball,” O’Shea said. “The offensive line was pushing them around a little bit and opening holes. There were some pretty big holes for Johnny to run through, but he also took on a lot of contact and came through tough contact.

“I believe any time a guy has some success out there, his confidence is going to grow.”

jason.bell@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @WFPJasonBell