Travon Homer Van (born May 6, 1991) is a
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 ( ...
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 handoffs from the quarterback to rush the ball, to line up as a receiver to catch the ball,
and block. The ...
for the
San Diego Strike Force of the
Indoor Football League
The Indoor Football League (IFL) is a professional indoor American football league created in 2008 out of the merger between the Intense Football League and United Indoor Football. It has one of the largest number of currently active teams am ...
(IFL). He played
college football at
Montana
Montana () is a U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West List of regions of the United States#Census Bureau-designated regions and divisions, division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North ...
. Van made his professional debut for the
Ottawa Redblacks, where he won a
Grey Cup
The Grey Cup (french: Coupe Grey) 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 be ...
in 2016. He has also been a member of 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 ...
and
BC Lions
The BC Lions are a professional Canadian football team based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Lions compete in the West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), and play their home games at BC Place.
The Lions played their first season ...
.
Professional career
Ottawa Redblacks
After going undrafted in the
2015 NFL Draft
The 2015 NFL Draft was the 80th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. It took place in Chicago at the Auditorium Theatre and in Grant Park, from April 30 to May 2. The previo ...
Van signed with the
Ottawa Redblacks (CFL) on August 10, 2015 to replace
Chevon Walker. Van did not see any playing time in
2015
File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the April ...
, but in
2016 he came into prominence in the Redblacks offense after starting running back
William Powell
William Horatio Powell (July 29, 1892 – March 5, 1984) was an American actor. A major star at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, he was paired with Myrna Loy in 14 films, including the '' Thin Man'' series based on the Nick and Nora Charles characters crea ...
tore his
Achilles tendon
The Achilles tendon or heel cord, also known as the calcaneal tendon, is a tendon at the back of the lower leg, and is the thickest in the human body. It serves to attach the plantaris, gastrocnemius (calf) and soleus muscles to the calcane ...
in preseason. The Redblack employed a running back by committee approach in 2016, which included
Mossis Madu
Mossis Madu Jr (born November 4, 1987) is a former gridiron football running back. He most recently played for the Ottawa Redblacks of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He was signed by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent in 2 ...
(106 touches), Travon Van (100),
Nic Grigsby (73), and
Kienan LaFrance (49). Van carried the ball 81 times in 2017, for 422 yards with three touchdowns. He also caught 19 passes for 137 yards. Following the season he was not re-signed by the Redblacks and became a free agent.
Edmonton Eskimos
On February 16, 2017, Van signed with 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 ...
. Van was slated to become the team's backup running back to
John White. Two weeks into the
2017 season, White suffered a season-ending injury, meaning Van was the new starter for the Eskimos. Van would play his former team, the Redblacks, on July 14. He would record his first 100+ yard rushing game, finishing the game with 18 carries for 103 yards. However, two weeks later Van would suffer a neck injury during a game against the BC Lions. He would be placed on the six-game injured list. He returned on September 16 against the
Toronto Argonauts
The Toronto Argonauts (officially the Toronto Argonaut Football Club and colloquially known as the Argos) are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), based in Toronto, Ontario ...
. Van would go on to record 18 carries for 76 yards and a touchdown before suffering a season-ending injury on September 30 versus 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 their h ...
. He appeared in six games in 2017, rushing for 283 yards and three touchdowns.
On February 16, 2018, the Eskimos re-signed Van to a one-year contract. Nevertheless, Van was released by the Eskimos on May 1, 2018, as the team trimmed their roster down to 75 players in preparation for the
2018 season.
BC Lions
On May 10, 2018, Van signed with the
BC Lions
The BC Lions are a professional Canadian football team based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Lions compete in the West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), and play their home games at BC Place.
The Lions played their first season ...
. Van was released by the Lions on October 9, 2018, shortly following the acquisition of
Tyrell Sutton. Van played in thee games for the Lions in the
2018 season, rushing 10 times for 43 yards with one touchdown. He also caught four passes for 41 yards.
Toronto Argonauts
One week after being released by the Lions Van signed with the
Toronto Argonauts
The Toronto Argonauts (officially the Toronto Argonaut Football Club and colloquially known as the Argos) are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), based in Toronto, Ontario ...
on October 16, 2018.
San Diego Strike Force
On March 24, 2022, Van signed with the
San Diego Strike Force of the
Indoor Football League
The Indoor Football League (IFL) is a professional indoor American football league created in 2008 out of the merger between the Intense Football League and United Indoor Football. It has one of the largest number of currently active teams am ...
(IFL).
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Van, Travon
1991 births
Living people
American football running backs
Canadian football running backs
American players of Canadian football
Ottawa Redblacks players
Edmonton Elks players
BC Lions players
Players of American football from San Diego
Players of Canadian football from San Diego
Montana Grizzlies football players
Marshall Thundering Herd football players