Fraser Caldwell
Ticats.ca
The circumstances surrounding his second stint in the CFL may be radically different, but Martell Mallett’s approach to the game remains what it was when he took the league by storm in 2009.
The fourth-year pro entered his premiere season with the BC Lions as an unknown quantity, but quickly built a reputation on his way to recognition as the CFL’s Most Outstanding Rookie three years ago.
Silverware tends to breed expectation and excitement, and Mallett’s case is no different. Since the Ticats’ announcement that the team had successfully lured the running back across the 49th parallel in January, fans and pundits alike have speculated as to what sort of influence he can have in Black and Gold.
Despite the palpable hype surrounding his arrival, Mallett indicates that his mindset remains the same regardless of his role on the team.
“I’ve still got the same mentality,” said the sophomore CFLer. “I mean, I’ve learned a lot and I’ve definitely grown. I know how to practice and how to break down film. So I know what to do now in a training camp. I know when to pace myself and when it’s time to pick it up. But I still have the same fire in me, and you’ve got to have a chip on your shoulder like I did in 2009. I’m just trying to work hard.”
Many in Mallett’s position might allow the publicity of a move such as his to inflate their ego. But far from displaying arrogance, the Ticats’ rusher openly shuns the notion that the excitement in TigerTown has somehow changed him. Indeed, he argues that to let such things to go to his head would harm his ability to perform on the football field.
“I’m the same person I’ve always been,” said Mallett of his current perspective. “I couldn’t care less about the hype. Some people love that kind of thing, but it doesn’t matter to me. I still have to come in here each and every day to work and have something to prove. You can never be satisfied.”
Part of his ongoing work to improve as a player involves reacquainting himself with the Canadian brand of football after two years spent south of the border. While he admits that the process of picking up the nuances of the CFL continues, Mallett believes that his previous season of experience has served to quicken the pace of adjustment.
“It’s been a few years but it’s all coming back to me pretty quickly. Once I get a grip on the offence and get comfortable again, I’ll be able to play fast and be able to do some of the things that I’m accustomed to.”
Even the most cursory glance at Mallett’s training camp efforts thus far suffices to show that he still possesses the relentless, stand-up speed from scrimmage that caused chaos among opposing defenders in his landmark 2009 season. What remains to be built is the base of knowledge and understanding with his teammates that will allow the new arrival to Steeltown to hit his full stride.
Mallett knows full well that such shared learning takes time, and is confident that each day spent on the training field is a step in right direction.
“It’s definitely coming,” said the Ticats’ rusher of the offence’s development. “It’s a new group of guys out there and it just takes repetition and practice. You just try to get better each and every single time out there because you know that the timing will come.”
With the team as a whole working to master the collective learning curve, Mallett indicates that the players are simultaneously learning and teaching one another. Rather than put the onus of educating on the coaching staff, positional squad-mates can quickly correct mistakes in the huddle.
“We’re out there helping each other,” said the sophomore CFLer. “None of the backs know the system completely so we’re all in new territory. When you see someone doing something wrong we make sure to coach them up. Rather than having the coaches get on them, we help them out beforehand in the huddle. Whatever it is that we have to do, we’re all communicating out there.”
Back in the CFL fold and accompanied by no shortage of fanfare, Mallett’s grounded commitment to improvement lives on and drives him forward as he looks to cement his place in Black and Gold.
