I’ve come to terms with my retirement. I’m 37 — I’m about to turn 38 this year — and I’ve been able to play for 10 years in the CFL and 14 years altogether.
I really think I’ve been blessed — I’ve only had one serious injury and not many people can say they’ve played that long, especially at the receiver position. So I’m ready to move on.
Usually, the older guys on a football team are the o-line are the field-goal kickers and not the receivers. That’s because with my position, there’s a lot of running and the first thing to go is usually your speed, and I really didn’t have that much to begin with. So to last as long as I have, it’s been amazing.
After the Achilles injury in 2009, the first thing that came to my head was that I wouldn’t be able to play anymore and that I would have to retire. That’s such a tough injury when you tear your Achilles — it’s tough to come back from when you’re 20, much less 37. But Huff reassured me that if I wanted to play, the team wanted me to come back. That was good to hear and that kind of lit a fire under me.
That season coming back after the injury meant a lot. It went from thinking I may never be able to sprint again, let alone play football, to coming back and playing in that first pre-season game. Literally, I was smiling from ear to ear when I went out on the field.
One of the guys from Saskatchewan saw me and asked: “What are you laughing at?” He had no clue, but it was just that feeling of knowing what I had been through with the injury and the surgery — it was really tough — and to be out there running and playing a professional football game, honestly, it was like starting all over again.
It’s true what they say about not truly being able to appreciate events during your career until after it’s over. I think I had a pretty decent career and I put up some pretty good numbers. Like I mentioned before, to be able to last as long as I have must say something about what I was able to do. Sticking around for that long, they must have appreciated me for some reason.
When it comes to standout moments, the easy thing to say is the Grey Cups, and that’s true. There are not many people who can say they’ve actually won the Grey Cup and held it and drank from it, and I’ve been able to do it twice.
So the Grey Cups would be the answer that everyone would expect, but for me what stood out was when my first daughter was born. That was in 2003 and we were in Montreal. I couldn’t be there for the birth but I got to listen on the phone and I was so excited just listening on the phone that I didn’t realize I had locked myself out of my room and I was in my underwear. I’ll always remember that and we joke about it now.
The next day, we were playing Montreal and it was the funnest game I’ve ever played. As I remember, I had a pretty good game and I ended up getting a touchdown and close to 100 yards. Just the anticipation of knowing that I would see be seeing my daughter for the first time, I’ll always remember that feeling.
I’ve been asked before about what I’m going to miss most about the game, and it’s not so much the game. Like I said, I’ve played the game for 14 years and I’m not going to miss the practices and the aches and pains. What I’ll miss is the people I’ve met along the way. I’ve made lifetime friends through the game.
Like Geroy Simon. We pretty much came into the league together and he’s one of my best friends. Seeing where he started to where he is now . . . I have a new son and it’s great that some day I’ll be able to tell him I played with Geroy Simon, one of the best players to ever play this game.
There’s Dave Dickenson. He was my teammate for a number of years and my coach for a couple of years and he’s just an amazing guy. I honestly think my game got better the year Dave got to BC because you understood the game more when you played with him. There were times I knew I was going to get the ball as soon as it was snapped and before it was even thrown, just by reading the coverages and knowing where I was supposed to be. That’s when my game started taking off. Dave is another lifetime friend.
There’s all the guys here in Calgary like Henry and Nik. It’s a funny story because when I first signed here from BC — and Nik and I joke about this now — but I didn’t really like Nik. I didn’t really know him but from what I had seen on TV and comments he had made, I didn’t really like him and I didn’t know what to expect. Now he’s one of my really good friends and my daughters call him “Uncle Nik.”
I’ve met a lot of great people and that’s what I’ll miss the most now that I’m retiring from the game.
As for what’s next, that’s been a little scary because I’ve played football pretty much my whole life. But I’m excited. I’ve met a lot of people outside of football who have asked me to do some things with them. I’m looking at a position with a company called DMG — that’s Devani Management Group, a company which deals with all aspects of real estate. I’m looking forward to it. It’s going to be a good learning experience. I think football has taught me a lot and those are lessons I can bring with me in my next career. It should be fun.
Ryan Thelwell, #3