It’s been five years since Lucky Whitehead last pulled on a Winnipeg Blue Bombers jersey and 285 days since he earned a game-day paycheque.
So, to be perfectly blunt, hell yeah, the 32-year-old receiver is going to have goosebumps upon goosebumps and his heart-rate will be off the charts when he runs out of the tunnel tonight to face the B.C. Lions — his last squad before rejoining the Blue Bombers last month.
“That’s going to be emotional for many reasons,” said Whitehead after Thursday’s walk-through practice. “To be able to start, to hear the crowd, come out of that tunnel, just playing ball again, right? I’m super, super excited. I’ve been preparing for this. It’s good, I prepared, so, I’m ready to go out there.
“It’s just excitement. Excitement to play in front of this fan base again, play with my teammates and, obviously, play against some old friends is fun. And seeing my boy Keon Hatcher (the Lions receiver) come back from a tough injury, it’s a blessing. I’m super excited.”
Whitehead comes onto the roster as the Blue Bombers experience more injury turmoil, losing two more starters in receiver Drew Wolitarsky and right guard Pat Neufeld, both of whom were moved to the six-game injured list. Whitehead joins a receiving corps that now features Nic Demski, Pokey Wilson, Josh Johnson and Kevens Clercius with Dalton Schoen, Kenny Lawler, Wolitarsky and Keric Wheatfall all on the mend, while American rookie Kendall Randolph will line up in Neufeld’s spot.
A CFL All-Star in 2021, Whitehead posted a 1,000-yard receiving season in 2022 and had 58 receptions for 728 yards and three TDs last year for the Lions. He wasn’t re-signed in free agency as the Lions were stacked at the position to also let Dominique Rhymes walk on the open market to the Ottawa RedBlacks.
What he adds now is speed and experience to a receiving corps that could use helpings of both given how ravaged the unit is by injury.
Asked if he can be a Lucky charm for the offence, Whitehead flashed his trademark 1,000-watt smile.
“I can be great, a big charm, honestly,” he said. “For my gameplay, my speed, it’s gonna hep open some things up for the guys. So, that’s what I’m excited about for myself to make plays.
“I didn’t really get a chance to play with Zach (Collaros) in ’19, so, I’m excited to do that as well. I got a pep in my step. I’ve got fresh legs and I’m excited to fly around. My first practice yesterday, my legs were too good. I had to slow myself down a little bit.
“But it’s going be fun. I’ve got to hone in on some small details and be ready to fly around out there tomorrow so I’m not thinking.”
Whitehead said he learned a lot about himself during his time waiting — he took up gardening and helped train kids. That taught him patience, which served him well as he waited for a chance to get up to speed with the Blue Bombers offence and back in the lineup.
“It was a waiting game, just learning and sitting back and constantly watching,” he said. “When I finally got active, Osh (head coach Mike O’Shea) kind of patted me on the butt and was like. ‘Thank you for being patient.’ That’s what it is as a pro, that’s the game, and you’ve got to understand that, which I know. And I knew that coming in that I had to sit back and learn.
“When I first talked to y’all, I said I want to earn the trust of my teammates and I think I’m doing that and I’ve done that and I want to go out there and show that (tonight).”
All of this simply helps fill Whitehead’s emotional tank. Again, the storylines feeding his own script: returning at 32 in a place where his CFL career started, against his old squad, and after all that uncertainty as to whether he’s suit up again.
And if he harboured any notions at all about walking away, he surely wasn’t expressing any of that on Thursday.
“I love the game. I love football,” he said. “The locker room, there’s no experience about it. A lot of people ask ‘What would you miss most?’ And it’s the locker room, the things that people don’t see. We go have dinner together, we play video games, we’re sitting there playing ping pong, telling jokes. And most of us are away from our families.
“So, it’s like that college atmosphere all over again where you got that brotherhood and you get extra close and tight to where it’s like that’s where you build those championship teams.”
One more from Whitehead…
He was clutching a T-shirt as he conducted his media session on Thursday given to him after practice by a fan. Featured prominently on the shirt is a photo of Whitehead with the fan from when he joined the zanies in Section 141 for the 2021 West Final here in Winnipeg and a Blue Bombers win over the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
“I’m super excited to run down there and obviously, get them pumped up,” said Whitehead with a grin. “I’m going to get the stadium pumped up. Obviously, that’s just my energy and my character. And it helps me to do fun stuff on the field within the game.
“If you see my catch something and I’m going out of bounds and I’m closer to the fans, I’m definitely going to get them pumped up any chance I get whether it’s a one-yard catch or 30.”
