My Most Memorable Game | Brandon Alexander

Each week a Bombers player visits with Ed Tait of bluebombers.com to reminisce about a particular game, or games, that is most memorable for them in their careers in high school, college or professional careers.

Brandon Alexander background:

• Alexander signed with the Bombers in 2017 and has appeared in 39 games over the last three seasons.
• Was named the Bombers Most Outstanding Rookie in 2017
• A walk-on at Central Florida University, he was nominated twice for the Burlsworth Trophy, which is awarded annually to the college football player who began his career as a walk-on player.

Alexander:

“I have a couple of games that pop out to me, one from high school and the other from college…

“The first high school game that pops out to me was when I played Apopka High School in my senior year, the second to the last game of the season. Apopka is where I used to go in my first two years of high school before I transferred to Evans High School.

“It didn’t matter whether it was football, basketball, track… any time we played Apopka, I went off. This game, we were 1-7 or 1-8 at the time. We were not a very good football team and Apopka was getting ready to go to the playoffs. And they are supposed to blow us out of the water.

“I scored two touchdowns at receiver – one on a 50-yard run, the other close to the goal line. I had over 100 yards and two touchdowns in the first half and the score is 22-19. We have a chance to win the game. Then they started to double and triple team me and we lost 44-19.

That game stands out. I found it cool because I left a place where I was playing defensive end and didn’t get a shot to play any other position and go to another school and get to play a different position and showed those guys. It was, ‘I told you I could play.’

I’ve also got two college games that I remember because of their impact on me as a player.

:First one, is from my freshman year and we are in Alabama playing UAB (University of Alabama-Birmingham). This is my first game actually playing. I was playing special teams. I didn’t play any defence because we travelled seven corners and six of them got scholarships — I’m the only one that didn’t have one.

“My closest friend ends up tearing his ACL in the second quarter. I’m going to run over to see if he’s OK – he’s the guy I watch film with and everything – and as I’m running over there Coach O’Leary grabs me by my shoulder pads, looks at me and says, ‘Get your A—out there!’ and he throws me on the field. First play I’m guarding J.J. Nelson, one of the fastest receivers in The League (San Francisco 49ers) right now. I didn’t even back-pedal, I just ran backwards.

“Our safety at the time, comes to me and says, ‘You’re not a walk-on anymore. You are here. You’ve got to play.’ I didn’t get any interceptions or anything in that game, but he made me feel comfortable. I had put so much time in, it felt good to know I was in. Earlier this year I called Coach O’Leary and asked him about that. I said, ‘Coach, we travelled so many corners on scholarships… why did you chose me?’ He told me, ‘because you came in and you worked and I knew if I gave you an opportunity you weren’t going to let me down.’ That definitely started my career in college.

“The other two games are 2013 and then 2014, both against Houston, where I made the last play to save the game. I had an interception in both

seven tackles tackle for a loss

“In 2013 I broke up a pass in the end zone for us to win a game. Then in 2014 a guy was scrambling and if he scores, they win the game. He dives for the touchdown and I dive and I knock his arm and he fumbles at the goal line and it hits the pylon and we win the game. I got player of the week both times.”