Stamps running back Joffrey Reynolds (Reynolds bio) reached a special milestone last Thursday when he became the sixth Calgary player to rush for more than 5,000 yards.
Reynolds reached the mark with a two-yard run on his first carry, then proceeded to carry 11 times for 96 yards and three touchdowns in a 43-16 win. He now has 5,095 rushing yards and is close to passing James Sykes (5,357) for fifth place on the list. The full leaderboard is below.
After achieving this mark, Reynolds did a question-and-answer with Stampeders.com. We also have a highlight video of some of his best runs . . .

When you came to Calgary in 2004, did you think you’d ever rush for 5,000 yards with this team?
No, not really. I was a new guy and the team wasn’t very good then. I was just trying to take it one game at a time, hoping to stick on with the team. At that point, it was kind of early in my career and I bounced around a little bit. So I was just trying to make a name for myself.

When did you realize there was a chance you could do some good things here?
After the first five games, I had a little bit of success that year. The next year kind of added to that and after that it was just a matter of trying to improve as a player. I tried to enhance myself as a runner, then I wanted to get involved with the passing game a little more. Now it’s evolved so that I’m kind of a dual threat on both sides and I’ve added the kickoff returns to my arsenal, so I try to keep growing as a better football player.

Does it feel like you’ve rushed for 5,000 yards?
Until last week, when I found out I was one yard away, I had no idea that I was even close. But here it is. I really wanted to get that over with at the beginning of the game and just get on with winning. I told Geo (equipment manager Hopkins) that I didn’t really even want the ball. I just wanted to keep going with what we were doing.

So you never kept the ball?
I didn’t even get it. I just thought, “Hopefully there’s more to come.”

You’d keep it for 10,000, though, wouldn’t you?
(Laughs) I might keep that one, yeah.

What does reaching 5,000 yards mean to you?
Obviously, you need to have some longevity in your career. You have to be productive. I’m going into my fourth full season here, so I feel that I did it in a pretty good amount time. It feels good. But I’m looking to build on it. I’m definitely not satisfied. I want to hit 6,000, 7,000, who knows, 10,000.

Do you have a favourite run?
I would probably have to say against Edmonton last year when we were there. I had a long TD run. We were down that game and we were playing up and down, and we weren’t winning on the road. So that was a big run to get the team back in the game.

Do you remember a lot of your runs, or few?
Not many of them. Sometimes I see them on the replay screen and think, “Oh yeah, that was a nice one, I forgot about that one.” I don’t remember most of them. The 5,000 is kind of a blur. I find it hard to believe I’m in my fourth full year. Things kind of run together a bit.

Are you proud of the fact you achieved this under three different head coaches?
Yeah, I think that’s the amazing thing. Each time you have a new coach you have to establish yourself as a player again. I haven’t had the luxury of some veterans, where they say they don’t need to see you in training camp. I’ve definitely had to prove myself every year. We bring in good competition and I think that’s part of keeping you on you’re a game and making you a better player. You have to go out and prove to people that you are who you are. That translates to the production on the field.

STAMPS CAREER RUSHING YARDS
8,292    Kelvin Anderson (1996-2002)
6,994    Earl Lunsford (1956, 1959-63)
6,394    Lovell Coleman (1960-67)
6,234    Willie Burden (1974-81)
5,357    James Sykes (1978-83)
5,095    Joffrey Reynolds (2004-current)