Former CCU star Backus getting another shot in CFL

Former Coastal Carolina football standout Quinn Backus has continued to hold out hope that he’d get another chance to prove himself at the professional level.

He has kept lifting weights, kept running, kept waiting for an opening.

And Friday it came.

Backus has accepted an invitation to join the practice squad for the Canadian Football League’s Ottawa Redblacks, pending a physical, with the intention of earning his way onto the active roster once he picks up the defense.

“I was running a few errands and I got on my laptop to do something, and then I saw the email,” Backus said. “The GM from the Ottawa Redblacks told me to give him a call. He said he wanted to talk to me about potentially coming up to Canada. I was smiling. I called him [and] my voice was shaky I was so excited.”

Backus, the first ever three-time Big South Defensive Player of the Year, wrapped up his collegiate career with the Chanticleers last season, finishing as the program’s all-time leading tackler and 14th on the FCS’ all-time list with 414 tackles.

After going undrafted by the NFL as an undersized prospect for his position, he received a tryout with the Houston Texans and later in the summer had a tryout with the CFL’s Montreal Alouettes. Neither opportunity panned out, but he’s hoping this one will be different.

Backus, who was set to be honored during Coastal Carolina’s football game Saturday night, said he was told that the Redblacks recently lost two linebackers and had only two healthy ones left on the roster. He flys out Sunday to take a physical for the team before he signs his practice squad contract and sees what he can make of it.

“[The Ottawa general manager] just said it will be based on however long it will take me to pick up the system,” Backus said. “I feel good. But they’ve been playing football since June and I haven’t been in pads. So I’ll have to get adjusted to that. I’ve been running and lifting everyday so I’m in shape, but I’m not in football playing shape.

“I feel if I can give my all, do what I can do, control what I can control, get into the playbook, everything will work out.”

The Redblacks were 7-4 and second in the CFL’s East Division heading into play Saturday. They have six more regular-season games remaining after this weekend.

As he told the story, Backus said the timing of the invitation was coincidental as he had just visited Coastal Carolina’s practice on Thursday and was talking to Chants director of football operations George Glenn about his career and what options existed.

“Me and coach Glenn were on the sideline at practice, we had a long talk about life, about football. Next thing you know it’s like God was listening to our conversation,” he said.

“... I’m hungry, I’m really hungry. All summer I’ve just been [thinking about] why, why am I not on a team, why am I not playing the game I love? I’m just excited to be heading to Canada and I’m going to give my all [and make it] hard for them to cut me.”

This story was originally published September 26, 2015 at 5:26 PM with the headline "Former CCU star Backus getting another shot in CFL."