Daryl Stephenson (born October 8, 1985) is a former professional

Canadian football Canadian football, or simply football, is a Sports in Canada, sport in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete on a field long and wide, attempting to advance a Ball (gridiron football), pointed oval-shaped ball into the opposi ...

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offense ...

. He was originally drafted by the

Winnipeg Blue Bombers The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are a professional Canadian football team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Blue Bombers compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division (CFL), West division. They play thei ...

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

and played with that franchise for three seasons. Stephenson then played for two seasons with the

Hamilton Tiger-Cats The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a professional Canadian football team based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. They are currently members of the East Division (CFL), East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The Tiger-Cats play their home game ...

before signing with the

Saskatchewan Roughriders The Saskatchewan Roughriders are a professional Canadian football team based in Regina, Saskatchewan. The Roughriders compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division. The Roughriders were founded in 19 ...

. He played collegiately for the

University of Windsor The University of Windsor (UWindsor, U of W, or UWin) is a public university, public research university in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's southernmost university. It has approximately 17,500 students. The university was incorporated by ...

Lancers A lancer was a type of cavalryman who fought with a lance. Lances were used for mounted warfare in Assyria as early as and subsequently by India, Egypt, China, Persia, Greece, and Rome. The weapon was widely used throughout Eurasia during the M ...

College

A tailback at 230 pounds with 4.7 speed in the 40-yard dash, Stephenson established himself as a leading rusher in Canadian University Football. In his very first game in the CIS and on his very first carry, Stephenson took a hand off 49 yards up the middle and scored a touchdown in the Lancers season opening 30–28 victory over Queen's. That year (2004), Stephenson rushed for 1,192 yards to establish a new CIS rookie rushing record and was named the

Norm Marshall Trophy Norm, the Norm or NORM may refer to: In academic disciplines * Normativity, phenomenon of designating things as good or bad * Norm (geology), an estimate of the idealised mineral content of a rock * Norm (philosophy), a standard in normative e ...

winner as the OUA Football Rookie of the Year. In 2005, Stephenson rushed for 1,306 yards and 12 touchdowns en route to capturing his first CIS Rushing Title. In the process, he was named a first team offense member of the 2005 CIS Football All-Canadian Team and an OUA First Team All-Star. In 2006, he was awarded the

Hec Crighton Trophy The Hec Crighton Trophy (sometimes referred to as the Hec Crighton Award) is awarded annually to the most outstanding Canadian football player in U Sports. The trophy is named after Hec Crighton who was a former teacher, coach, referee, and the ...

as the Canadian University Football Player of the Year. Stephenson also captured his second straight CIS rushing title with 1,140 yards, helping the Lancer Football squad to a 6–2 record and a top ten ranking in Canada. He was also named the OUA Most Outstanding Player, a CIS First Team All-Canadian and an OUA First Team All-Star. He also made history as he became the first player in CIS history to rush for 1,000 yards in 3 straight seasons (2004 to 2006). After his first four seasons, his 4,402 career rushing yards was an OUA record and placed him third all-time in Canadian University Football history. In 2007, Stephenson played in parts of only four games due to injuries and still ranked fifth in the province and eighth in the nation with a rushing total of 764 yards. Stephenson scored a total of four touchdowns that season with the

Windsor Lancers The Windsor Lancers are the varsity athletic teams that represent the University of Windsor in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. The school's varsity program supports 9 different sports. Their mascot is a lancer and the team's colours are blue and gold ...

. Stephenson topped all the running backs at the 2008

CFL Evaluation Camp The CFL Combine (formerly known as the Evaluation Camp or E-Camp) is a three-day program in which athletes from Canadian universities and Canadians in the NCAA are scouted by general managers, coaches and scouts of the Canadian Football League ( ...

with a 37-inch vertical jump. On September 13, 2008, Stephenson became the all-time leading rusher in CIS history by surpassing Dominic Zagari of the

University of Manitoba The University of Manitoba (U of M, UManitoba, or UM) is a public research university in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Founded in 1877, it is the first university of Western Canada. Both by total student enrolment and campus area, the University of ...

's record of 4738 yards set from 1991 to 1995. He also became the first running back in Canadian University History to rush for over 5,000 yards in a career. His final collegiate total sits at 5,163 rushing yards. On April 1, 2009, Stephenson had his #24 jersey retired by the University of Windsor in recognition of his outstanding collegiate career.

Professional career

Winnipeg Blue Bombers

Stephenson was drafted in the third round (24th overall) in the 2008 CFL Draft by the

. He was released at the end of Winnipeg's training camp to play his final year of eligibility with the University of Windsor but on October 21, 2008, quickly re-signed by the Blue Bombers following Windsor's elimination from the

2008 CIS football season The 2008 CIS football season began on August 23, 2008, and concluded with the 44th Vanier Cup national championship on November 22 at Ivor Wynne Stadium in Hamilton, Ontario, with the Laval Rouge et Or winning their fifth championship. Twenty-seven ...

playoffs. He rejoined the Blue Bombers immediately and made his debut on October 26 against the

Montreal Alouettes The Montreal Alouettes (Canadian French, French: ''Les Alouettes de Montréal'') are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has disbanded twice and been re-established thrice. The Alouettes compe ...

Hamilton Tiger-Cats

Stephenson was signed as a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

by the

on February 17, 2011. On July 6, 2012, he scored his first professional touchdown on a nine-yard screen pass from

Henry Burris Henry Armand Burris Jr. (born June 4, 1975) is an American former professional football quarterback, and a member of the Canadian Football Hall of Fame. He is currently the co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for Florida A&M. Burris ...

against the

BC Lions The BC Lions are a professional Canadian football team based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Lions compete in the West Division (CFL), West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), and play their home games at BC Place. The Lions playe ...

. He finished with his highest receiving numbers in his professional career in 2012, recording six catches for 65 yards and two touchdowns. Stephenson avoided free agency by re-signing with the Tiger-Cats on February 6, 2013, but was released following the team's first preseason game on June 17, 2013.

Saskatchewan Roughriders

Shortly after his release from the Tiger-Cats, Stephenson signed with the

on June 19, 2013.Riders add Stephenson
/ref> Stephenson was released by the Roughriders on April 25, 2014, after winning the

101st Grey Cup The 101st Grey Cup was a Canadian football game played between the East Division champion Hamilton Tiger-Cats and the West Division champion Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League to decide the Grey Cup champions of the 2013 ...

with the team.

References

External links

Saskatchewan Roughriders bio

CIS profile and 2007 statistics
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stephenson, Daryl 1985 births Living people Canadian football people from London, Ontario Windsor Lancers football players Canadian football running backs Players of Canadian football from Ontario Winnipeg Blue Bombers players Hamilton Tiger-Cats players Saskatchewan Roughriders players