Jeshrun Antwi-Boasiako (born October 4, 1997) is an Israeli-Canadian professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

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 ...

for the

Calgary Stampeders The Calgary Stampeders are a professional Canadian football team based in Calgary, Alberta. The Stampeders compete in the West Division (CFL), West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The club plays its home games at McMahon Stadium a ...

of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; , LCF) is a Professional gridiron football, professional Canadian football league in Canada. It comprises nine teams divided into two divisions, with four teams in the East Division (CFL), East Division and f ...

(CFL).

Early life

Antwi was born in

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

, and moved to

Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...

when he was five years old, where he primarily played

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

growing up. He moved to

Calgary Calgary () is a major city in the Canadian province of Alberta. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806 making it the third-largest city and fifth-largest metropolitan area in C ...

with his mother, Ama Kesewaa, when he was 12 years old and began playing

gridiron football Gridiron football ( ),"Gridiron football"
''Encyclopædia Britannica'' ...

when he was 14. 55th Vanier Cup ULaval 19

University career

Antwi played

U Sports football U Sports football is the highest level of amateur play of Canadian football and operates under the auspices of U Sports, Canada's governing body for university sports. Twenty-seven teams from Canadian universities are divided into four athleti ...

for the

Calgary Dinos The Calgary Dinos are the athletic teams that represent the University of Calgary in Alberta, Canada. They were known as the "Dinosaurs" but usually referred to as the "Dinos" until 1999, when the name was officially shortened. Some of its venues ...

from 2015 to 2019. In

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

, he notably had 122 yards from scrimmage and two touchdowns in the

Hardy Cup The Hardy Trophy is a Canadian sport trophy, presented annually to the winner of the Canada West Universities Athletic Association Football Conference of U Sports, the country's governing body for university athletics. It is named for Evan Hardy, ...

victory over the

UBC Thunderbirds The UBC Thunderbirds are the athletic teams that represent the University of British Columbia. In Canadian intercollegiate competition, the Thunderbirds are the most successful athletic program both regionally in the Canada West Universities Athl ...

. He then played in his first

Vanier Cup The Vanier Cup () is the trophy awarded annually to the champion Canadian football team in U Sports, the governing body for university sports in Canada. The U Sports football champion is determined in a one-game playoff (the Vanier Cup game), pl ...

game in the

52nd Vanier Cup The 2016 Vanier Cup (branded as the ArcelorMittal Dofasco Vanier Cup for sponsorship reasons), the 52nd edition of the Canadian university football championship, took place on Saturday, November 26, 2016 at Tim Hortons Field in Hamilton, Ontario ...

, where he had 25 carries for 177 yards, but the Dinos lost to the

Laval Rouge et Or The Laval Rouge et Or (; , ''Red and Gold'') are the athletic teams that represent Université Laval, located in Quebec City, Quebec. Home games are all held in the PEPS indoor and outdoor sports facilities. Varsity teams Laval Rouge et Or team ...

by a score of 31 to 26. In his fifth year with the team, the Dinos returned to the

, but Antwi did not play due to injury. The Dinos defeated the

Montreal Carabins The Montréal Carabins () are the men's and women's athletic teams that represent the Université de Montréal in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Teams play at the CEPSUM Stadium and at Winter Stadium (Montreal), l'aréna du CEPSUM, located at the Uni ...

27 to 13 in the 55th Vanier Cup as Antwi finished his university career as a national champion.

Professional career

Montreal Alouettes

After becoming eligible for the 2019 CFL Draft, Antwi was drafted in the sixth round, 48th overall, by 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 ...

and signed with the team on May 6, 2019. He played in both preseason games with the team in

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

, but elected to return to school following training camp. After completing his university playing eligibility, Antwi re-signed with the Alouettes on November 28, 2019. However, the

2020 CFL season The 2020 CFL season would have been the 67th season of modern-day Canadian football. Officially, it would have been the 63rd season of the Canadian Football League. It was originally scheduled to begin on June 11; on April 7, the start of the ...

was cancelled and he did not play in 2020. After making the team following training camp in

2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...

, he played in his first professional game on August 14, 2021, against the

Edmonton Elks 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 (CFL), West Division and plays their home games at Commonw ...

, where he had four carries for 13 yards. He played in all 14 regular season games where he had 36 rush attempts for 176 yards and six receptions for 46 yards. He had a career-high 13 carries for 69 yards in the regular season finale, but also had two costly fumbles as the Alouettes lost to the

Ottawa Redblacks The Ottawa Redblacks (officially stylized as REDBLACKS) (Canadian French, French: ) are a professional Canadian football team based in Ottawa, Ontario. The team plays in the East Division (CFL), East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL ...

. He signed a two-year contract extension with the Alouettes on January 31, 2022. In

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

, Antwi began the season as the backup running back, but was thrust into the starting role following an injury to William Stanback in the first game of the season. He started six of the next seven games where he had 48 carries for 255 yards and 11 catches for 78 yards before relinquishing the starting role to Tavien Feaster and then Walter Fletcher. Antwi finished the year as the team's leading rusher with 106 carries for 600 yards and also had 30 receptions for 200 yards. Antwi returned to the Alouettes in

2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...

as the backup running back where he played in all 18 regular season games and had 39 carries for 229 yards and one touchdown along with 11 receptions for 75 yards and eight special teams tackles. He scored his first career touchdown on August 11, 2024, against 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 ...

on a 19-yard run. Antwi also gained notoriety for successfully executing a dribble kick on September 30, 2024, against the

when he punted one yard across the line of scrimmage and turned second-and-18 into a first down. He played in all three post-season games that year, including in his first

Grey Cup The Grey Cup () is both the championship game of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and the trophy awarded to the victorious team playing in the namesake championship of professional Canadian football. The game is contested between the winners ...

game. He recorded one reception for three yards in the Alouettes' 28–24 victory over 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 ...

in the

110th Grey Cup The 110th Grey Cup was played to determine the Canadian Football League (CFL) champion for the 2023 CFL season, 2023 season. The game was played on November 19, 2023, at Tim Hortons Field in Hamilton, Ontario, Hamilton, Ontario, between the West ...

championship. In

2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...

, Antwi was the primary backup running back behind Walter Fletcher, but saw fewer touches, as he played in 15 regular season games and recorded ten carries for 20 yards and five receptions for 21 yards.

BC Lions

On October 2, 2024, on the day of the trade deadline, Antwi was traded to 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 ...

in exchange for a third-round pick in the

2025 CFL draft The 2025 CFL national draft was a selection of national players by Canadian Football League teams that took place on April 29, 2025 at 6:00 pm ET. Seventy-two players were chosen from among eligible players from Canadian Universities acros ...

Calgary Stampeders

As a free agent from the Lions, Anwti signed with the

on February 11, 2025.

References

External links

Calgary Stampeders bio
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Antwi, Jeshrun 1997 births Living people BC Lions players Calgary Stampeders players Canadian football running backs Calgary Dinos football players Ghanaian players of Canadian football Montreal Alouettes players Players of Canadian football from Alberta Canadian football people from Calgary Israeli players of Canadian football