Jason French (born April 7, 1978) is a former professional

Canadian football Canadian football () is a sport played in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete for territorial control of a field of play long and wide attempting to advance a pointed oval-shaped ball into the opposing team's scoring area ( ...

slotback Slotback, sometimes referred to as an A-back or slot receiver, is a position in gridiron football. The "slot" is the area between the last offensive lineman on either side of the center and the wide receiver on that side. A player who lines up ...

. He was drafted by 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 i ...

in the second round of the

2001 CFL Draft The 2001 CFL Draft took place on Thursday, April 26, 2001. 48 players were chosen for Canadian Football League teams from among the eligible CIAU football players from Canadian universities, as well as Canadian players playing in the NCAA and the ...

. He played college football for the

Murray State Racers The Murray State Racers are the athletic teams that represent Murray State University (MSU), located in Murray, Kentucky, United States, in intercollegiate sports as a member of the NCAA Division I ranks (for football, the Football Championship Sub ...

College career

French attended

Murray State University Murray State University (MSU) is a public university in Murray, Kentucky. In addition to the main campus in Calloway County in southwestern Kentucky, Murray State operates extended campuses offering upper level and graduate courses in Paducah, ...

for two years after transferring from

Middle Georgia College Middle Georgia College (MGC) was a four-year state college unit of the University System of Georgia. On January 8, 2013, it was consolidated with Macon State College into a new institution, which is now known as Middle Georgia State University. Th ...

. French was Murray State's third leading receiver. He had 31 catches for 547 yards and three touchdowns. During his senior season, he caught 24 passes for 195 yards with a touchdown, making him the Racers' fourth leading receiver.

Professional career

Saskatchewan Roughriders

French was drafted by the

in the

. During his rookie season, he caught 12 passes for 197 yards. As a second year player, French was one of 13 wide receivers trying to make the Roughriders final roster. He played in 15 games in 2002 and recorded 16 receptions for 218 yards. French played in every game for Hamilton in 2003 and recorded his first career

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Americ ...

. For the season he had 37 catches for 385 yards with two touchdown. In 2004, French made a total of 13 starts with 10 coming at slotback and the other three at wide receiver. In week seven he had a career-high with six receptions for 129 yards. Overall, French had 52 catches for 869 yards with four touchdowns. At the end of the season, French was nominated for the CFL's Top Canadian Award. French started 16 games and missed the other two due to injury. Arguably his best game came in week five when he had 11 catches for 118 yards with a touchdown. For the season he had 52 receptions for 601 yards and three touchdowns. In 2006, he started half of the Roughriders games and also played in both playoff games. French's season totals were almost cut in half with 28 catches for 335 yards and a touchdown.

Hamilton Tiger-Cats

On June 24, 2007, French along with Thyron Anderson for Tad Kornegay. On August 13, 2007 in a game against the

Edmonton Eskimos The Edmonton Elks are a professional Canadian football team based in Edmonton, Alberta. The club competes in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member of the league's West Division and plays their home games at the Brick Field at Comm ...

, fellow Murray State graduate Andrew Nowacki caught his first career

pass. On Hamilton's possession following Nowacki's score, French caught a touchdown. The two touchdown catches for Nowacki and French came one minute apart. For 2007, a season in which French split time between Saskatchewan and Hamilton, he recorded 34 receptions for 417 yards and tied his career high with four touchdowns. In 2008, his final professional season he failed to record an offensive stat.

Personal

During the offseason, French lived with his wife Amber in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,71 ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:French, Jason 1978 births Living people Players of Canadian football from Quebec Canadian football slotbacks Murray State Racers football players Saskatchewan Roughriders players Hamilton Tiger-Cats players Canadian football people from Montreal