Rick Moffat
CFL.ca
Billy Parker isn’t one to trash-talk. No flapping the gums at opposing receivers. But flapping his wings? He’s all for that.
“I started doing it last year, but this season everyone’s focused on it,” he explained. “Arland Bruce tried to get in the way of our celebration after an interception in Hamilton. It’s crazy… we’ve dealt with stuff.”
The second year Alouettes halfback has matched his tackle and interception totals with four more games to play this season. That’s triggered more celebrations where Alouettes DBs go down on one knee and wave their arms.
Ballhawks?
“Actually, it’s cuz of all those birds that show up on game film at home. It just seems late in the season they’re flying all around and they actually were showing up on film in our meetings. That gave me the idea. It’s a natural, genuine thing.”
The ornithologically-challenged Parker doesn’t know he’s talking about the flocks of seagulls that sometimes swarm from the St. Lawrence River to Molson Stadium for popcorn, peanuts and other leftovers from sell-out crowds.
But the Als’ secondary has also had to eat crow more than a few times this season, beaten for big plays and bigger touchdowns.
“We slipped up in Calgary,” says the former Arena League interception leader. “That just wasn’t us. Nobody panicked, nobody blamed individuals. We just said we needed to correct things and we worked on it. “
When Parker plays his best, it’s not fun running routes against him. Just ask Ken-yon Rambo, ejected from the game in Montreal along with Romby Bryant and Parker for ruffling feathers.
“I don’t have any personal thing with Rambo or Romby,” insists Parker. “I won’t say why it happened…frustrated I guess.”
“If you get tossed, you get fined,” concedes Als’ GM Jim Popp, who would learn third time’s a charm with the hard-hitting back from William & Mary. “But if you don’t do it in a player’s face, if you take a step away and just do your thing it’s not taunting. I think there is too much taunting in this league. You can’t let guys taunt. That should be a penalty.”
“Billy’s at his best when he’s disrupting receivers, getting his hands on guys and being physical,” adds Popp. “He’s not easy to throw over or around. And he usually bounces back. He’s a level-headed, solid guy from very sharp parents.”
Truth is, Billy Parker was so sharp he refused Popp’s first two attempts to sign. At his first CFL camp he came north without so much as a contract. His agent also represented receiver O’Neil Wilson. But “The Don”, then Als’ Coach Don Mathews wanted to clip Parker’s wings and convert him to linebacker.
“I went to minicamp with the Cleveland Browns then at Als’ rookie camp, shoot, they had me playing WIL linebacker. They never let me play DB. So I went to play in the Arena League. “
Ballhawking his way to the interception crown got Parker migrating back to the NFL with the Dolphins and Panthers over the next two years.
His mother Pamela was a cheerleader and went on to coach track. His father William Parker IV played university basketball.
“I’m actually William Parker the fifth, but only my brother calls me ‘P-5’. Some of my teammates call me P-5 now, but I don’t think they even know what it means. They just heard my brother call me that.”
“I have the most supportive parents in the world,” adds Parker. “They’ve been up to see me in Montreal. Hopefully they’ll come for the Eastern Final and God-willing I’ll find a way to get them to Grey Cup again should we get there. They never missed my college games. I’ve had so many tryouts on my journey, they’ve been so supportive.”
Parker went back to the Arena League in 2007-08 and refused another offer from Popp because he’d already accepted an offseason job with the New York Dragons.
“I knew I could play and should have had more of a chance in the NFL, but my Arena coach told me good things would happen. Football puts you in a position where you gotta respond. Football doesn’t make you, but it reveals what kind of character you have.”
It’s a small football world and even smaller indoors. Parker had been at Dragon’s camp with a certain Jerald Brown (current Alouette teammate) back in 2004. A new coach forced “JB” to move on, opening up a job for Parker. When Billy went NFL, Brown ballhawked his way to Arena Defensive Player of the Year. Popp had them both on his radar again.
“We all had the same agent and we all found out we were on the Montreal neg-list together, and Eddie Moten told us he was going for a tryout for “Third and Long” (the Michael Irvin reality show). JB was like ‘I ain’t goin’ on no show.’ Andrew Hawkins, aka Hawk, (also an Alouette) nearly won it all. But we could just as easily have been overlooked. I was 28 coming to Montreal. JB was a year older. But Popp didn’t care.”
Parker swooped at the opportunity in Montreal only because the Arena league imploded financially. Suddenly his Long Island, New York apartment was no cozy bird’s nest.
“I think it’s tougher to make it in Canada. Camp is so short and there are fewer jobs open. But they moved Chip Cox and Jerald and I made the most of the opportunity.”
Cox could move to linebacker because the Als had found their ballhawks at halfback. Parker has loved his perch so much he’s quietly signed a contract extension through 2012.
“I like the fact I know what’s expected of me every single day and from all the other guys in the locker room. It’s not unstable if we lose a game like everything’s gonna fall apart.”
Like the indoor league did.
“Football’s given me mentors. There’s gonna be a time when it’s my turn.”
It already is. After the Als’ Grey Cup victory last November, Parker returned home to Virginia and joined the staff of his former high school coach with the Indoor Football League’s Richmond Revolution. Another former coach is now a school principal and ensures Parker’s substitute teaching at Atlee High School doesn’t foul up off-season training.
Can you teach an old ballhawk new tricks? Will he contemplate a switch to linebacker one day, should Cox fly the coop?
“I think Chip’s going to be there for a while.”
And the wing-flapping after picks?
“We’ve been talking. You just never know. If it changes its gotta be genuine and has a story, not just corny to get on TV.”
