The Canadian Football League (CFL) has ushered in some of the greatest and historic athletes. Over the years, these players have exhibited their skills, leadership, and determination to the change of the game.
Doug Flutie - Quarterback
October 23, 1962, is the birthdate of Doug Flutie, who’s widely recognized as a renowned quarterback due to his career in the US and Canada. Having an excellent high school career at Natick High School, he received only one Division I-away-from-home college scholarship at Boston College. This is where he managed to secure the starter quarterback slot as a freshman.
In his senior season, Flutie threw up a 48-yard Hail Mary touchdown against the University of Miami and went on to win the Heisman Trophy in 1984. By the time he graduated from Boston College, he had set NCAA records in passing and total offense.
Flutie was considered short for the NFL at 5'10". He started his professional career with a team in the now-defunct USFL, the New Jersey Generals, in 1985, and then was with the Bears briefly, then Patriots for a short time, and then he had an illustrious career in Canada.
In 1990, he moved to the CFL, thriving with his scrambling style. If he were still playing today, he would be one of the biggest favorites for those who love to browse through the best sports betting sites. Over eight seasons, he won six Most Outstanding Player awards, passed for over 40,000 yards, and helped three teams capture the Grey Cup.
Milt Stegall - Receiver
Milt Stegall was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, on January 25, 1970, and enjoyed a Hall-of-Fame career. He’s among the classiest receivers ever in the Canadian Football League. Owned a very good playing career at Miami (OH) University, where Stegall completed 106 receptions for 1,581 yards and was three timesearied All-Mid-American Conference.
Stegall came to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers as a rookie late in the 1995 season, where he struck gold quickly as one of the fastest and most talented players catching a football in the CFL. By 1997, he had eluded defenders to achieve an impressive average of 26.5 yards per catch and scored 14 touchdowns in a year. By then, he began to show everyone he was beginning to earn a reputation, not just around the CFL, but increasingly more around North America as one of the biggest playmakers in the Canadian professional sport.
His greatness hit its highest point in 2002. He had one of the best individual seasons, if not the best individual season in professional sports, that the CFL and professional sports have ever seen. He led the league in every significant receiving statistic, with 106 catches, 1,896 receiving yards, and a record 23 touchdowns for a single season.
Damon Allen - Quarterback
Damon Allen was born on July 29, 1963, in San Diego, California, and is recognized as one of the most successful quarterbacks in CFL history. After a successful career at Cal State Fullerton, where he was successful in nearly every category, he helped the Titans win two conference championships.
During Allen's career, he played for seven teams over 23 seasons, with Allen becoming the second boxer in the history of Calgary to win a Grey Cup and MVP (in 1993 with Edmonton). Plus, he set the record for all-time passing yardage in 2000 (50,535 yards). He was also the first quarterback to throw over 10,000 yards.
In 2003, Allen was traded to the Toronto Argonauts, where he set the record for most career touchdown passes, 394, the following year. He also won his fourth Grey Cup in 2004, where he was once again the MVP.
When Allen retired from professional football in 2008, he was the all-time passing leader in professional football at 72,381 passing yards and the CFL all-time leader in TD passes (394), completions (5,158), and rushing yards by a quarterback (11,914 yards).
