Qadr Spooner

Qadr (kah-DAR)[1] Spooner (born August 7, 1992)[2] is a Canadian football offensive lineman. Spooner was also a defensive lineman when he played as a kid, before one of his midget football coaches converted him. He was selected by the Blue Bombers as the 15th overall pick in the 2017 draft out of McGill University.

Qadr Spooner
Free agent
Position:Offensive lineman
Personal information
Born: (1992-08-07) August 7, 1992
Brossard, Quebec
Height:6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Weight:305 lb (138 kg)
Career information
High school:Centennial Regional High School
College:McGill
CFL draft:2017 / Round: 2 / Pick: 15
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Player stats at CFL.ca

Early Life/High School

Qadr Spooner, born and raised in Brossard, Québec, grew up with his two younger brothers who shared his love of football. His father wasn't around much, while his mother was constantly working. He played bantam football with the Greenfield Park Packers, in which he played as a defensive lineman. He also played at the midget level of football, while he attended Centennial High School.

During this time, his long-time D-line coach, Jim Gingera, noticed that even though Spooner stood out as a D-lineman, he knew he would also make an excellent offensive lineman. In his second year of midget, his team, the Packers, were short of men on the O-line and so Spooner was put there for the time being. He much preferred being a defensive lineman but he did excel greatly on the O-line.

After some trouble at his school and being at risk of dropping out, he left Centennial and went to an alternate program to focus on academics. There, his teacher really helped him get back on track with school, while also balancing a job to stay out of poverty, and he left the program early to go back to Centennial, where he graduated on time.[3]

College career

After graduating from Centennial, Spooner attended Vanier College in Montréal, Québec. There, he played for their football team, the Vanier Cheetahs. He continued to play more and more as an offensive lineman, still not too keen on it. While studying special care counseling and keeping a job, Spooner played for the Cheetahs for three years. By that time, he finally accepted being a full-time offensive lineman.

Spooner finished off his college career at McGill University in Montréal, where he played for the McGill Redmen.[3]

Professional career

Coming out of McGill, Spooner was a high-ranking prospect heading toward the 2017 draft. The CFL Scouting Bureau ranked Spooner as the 13th best prospect, and 5th best offensive lineman, after seeing him in the combine.[4] There, he tied with D-lineman Mathieu Dupuis with the third best bench press, at 31 reps.[5] Spooner would then go on to be selected by the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in the second round, as the 15th overall pick in the draft.[6]

Winnipeg Blue Bombers

Spooner spent his entire 2017 rookie season on the Blue Bombers' practice squad. He also turned down an offer to go to the BC Lions mid-season.

Prior to the 2018 season, Spooner got taken off the practice squad and was placed as a backup offensive lineman,[7] but some time early in the season, he was placed on the Bombers' six-game injured list.[8] He would only appear in one game all season,[2] another reason for that is the suspension he served.

Suspension

About halfway through the 2018 season, Spooner tested positive for methasterone, an anabolic steroid,[9] which is banned by the CFL and the Canadian Football League Players' Association (CFLPA).[10] He faced a two game suspension for his first offense during weeks 9 & 10 of the season.[11] According to Spooner, he had no idea how that got in his body and denied any knowledge of taking it.

Edmonton Eskimos

On February 21, 2019, the Edmonton Eskimos announced that they had signed Spooner through the 2019 season.[12]

References
  1. "McGill Athletics & Recreation". www.mcgillathletics.ca. McGill Athletics and Recreation. Retrieved August 27, 2018.
  2. "Qadr Spooner". CFL.ca. Retrieved March 15, 2019.
  3. O'Leary, Chris (May 18, 2017). "O'Leary: Qadr Spooner's hard but rewarding road to the pros – CFL.ca". www.cfl.ca. CFL Enterprises. Retrieved August 25, 2018.
  4. CFL.ca Staff (May 5, 2017). "Senior tops final CFL Scouting Bureau ranking – CFL.ca". www.cfl.ca. CFL Enterprises. Retrieved August 26, 2018.
  5. CFL.ca Staff (April 15, 2017). "Prospect Profile: Qadr Spooner on the verge of making the jump – CFL.ca". www.cfl.ca. CFL Enterprises. Retrieved August 26, 2018.
  6. CFL.ca Staff (May 8, 2017). "A team by team look at the 2017 CFL Draft – CFL.ca". www.cfl.ca. CFL Enterprises. Retrieved August 27, 2018.
  7. Sawatzky, Mike (June 13, 2018). "Spooner knows Bombers have something special – Winnipeg Free Press". Winnipeg Free Press. WInnipeg Free Press. Retrieved August 28, 2018.
  8. Sawatzky, Mike (September 7, 2018). "Spooner back from suspension, could return to lineup". Winnipeg Free Press. Retrieved March 17, 2019.
  9. "Superdrol: How Does it Work? Benefits & Side Effects". www.skinny2fit.com. Skinny2Fit.com. 2018-03-24. Retrieved August 28, 2018.
  10. CFL.ca Staff (August 9, 2018). "Bombers OL Qadr Spooner suspended for violating drug policy – CFL.ca". cfl.ca. CFL Enterprises. Retrieved August 29, 2018.
  11. CFL.ca Staff (December 14, 2017). "Schedule – CFL.ca". cfl.ca. CFL Enterprises. Retrieved August 29, 2018.
  12. Esks Staff (February 21, 2019). "Eskimos Sign Qadr Spooner". Esks.com. Retrieved March 15, 2019.
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