Brent Just/Electric Umbrella
Josiah St. John has dropped a few pounds this off-season, but he’s also carrying some extra weight.
It’s the chip he’s got on his shoulder.
“I can tell a lot of people don’t believe in me 100 per cent, so I need to prove myself,” the Saskatchewan Roughriders’ second-year offensive lineman said. “It’s not just for myself but for my family also because when I’m on the field, people see ‘St. John’ on my back.
“I’m playing with a huge chip on my shoulder this year and I’m pretty sure people will be able to notice a difference.”
St. John was the first overall pick in the 2016 CFL draft, but he didn’t join the Roughriders until July 4 due to a contract holdout. He ultimately dressed for 10 regular-season games with six starts.
But many league observers have questions about St. John and wonder whether the 6-foot-6, 305-pound product of Toronto will make it in the CFL. It’s those doubters who have helped to inspire St. John this off-season.
“Coach (Chris) Jones and the organization have supported me 100 per cent since I got here, so it’s about making believers out of everybody else,” said St. John, 24. “I’m confident in my abilities. I’m confident in what I bring to the table. Showing the world is what I’ve got to do.”
After completing high school in Toronto, St. John headed to California to play football at Fresno City College. He spent one season there before moving to Trinity Valley Community College in Athens, Texas.
Following one season at Trinity Valley, St. John was recruited by the University of Oklahoma Sooners in Norman, Okla. He redshirted in 2013 and then played the 2014 and ’15 seasons.
The Roughriders used the draft’s No. 1 pick on St. John, but the rookie held out. He missed all of training camp, the pre-season and Saskatchewan’s regular-season opener before agreeing to terms.
“(Arriving late) was extremely difficult; I would not advise anybody to miss camp,” St. John said. “It was hard because I wasn’t in the best shape when I got here, I didn’t know the playbook and I didn’t know my teammates.
“Training camp is not just for practices. It’s also for bonding as a team, and I missed all of that. I came in behind the 8-ball and I noticed it.”
Jones, the Roughriders’ head coach and general manager, said recently that he saw a lot of growth from St. John as the season progressed.
The Roughriders had to help St. John adjust to the Canadian game again and to the speed of the CFL. They also had to get him into shape — and into the weight room.
“If he commits in the weight room and he commits to football, he can be as good as he wants to be,” Jones told reporters in February.
Asked if St. John wants to be good, Jones replied: “You’d have to ask him that. But he says all the right things.”
Told of Jones’ comments, St. John said he “definitely” wants to be a quality CFL player. He knows the key is hard work — and he wants to get back to the level he was at when he first got to Fresno.
That has meant an off-season of workouts.
“The first step was to come back here early,” said St. John, referring to his decision to return to Regina in March to work out with Roughriders strength and conditioning co-ordinator Clint Spencer.
“Playing college, I was gone for five years so I was away from my family a lot. My first (CFL) off-season, I could have been with them, but I came back to Regina early to get ahead of the game a little bit.
“I wanted to start going over plays, start watching film, start lifting with my teammates and, overall, be more committed than I have been in the past.”
St. John played at 320 pounds last season, which was 15 pounds heavier than his playing weight at Oklahoma. He’s aiming to get back to 305 pounds while also improving his strength.
He also wants to improve his footwork, his use of his hands, his technique and his knowledge of the CFL game.
With the recent retirement of right guard Chris Best, there’s a golden opportunity for St. John to slide into a starting job in 2017. He made one start at that position in 2016, when Saskatchewan deployed six different players at right guard.
“I’m excited about (the possibility of starting),” St. John said. “As a competitor, I go into every camp trying to win a position.
“Nobody wants to sit on the bench. Nobody wants to watch what’s going on. That has been my mentality. It’s why I came back early to train and lift. I want to compete for a starting job this year.”
