Happy 4th of July…From Canada

(Image via wikipedia)

(Image via Cleveland.com)

This year is only the second year in my life that I spent the 4th of July outside of the United States.  While this time I was almost literally close enough to see the USA in Victoria, Canada, it was an odd feeling being out of the country on my favorite holiday.  It did get me thinking though, about the former Wolverines that hailed from our northern neighbor.  This isn’t meant to be an exhaustive list, and I’m sure I’ll get some help from the comment section regarding the players I missed.  For fun, I’ve ranked them based on their on-field contributions at Michigan.  

1. Tshimanga (Tim) Biakabutuka, Vanier College (Montreal).  I’m not sure I’m going to get much pushback on putting Tim Biakabutuka #1 on this list.  Biakabutuka was actually born in the now defunct central African nation of Zaire, but moved to Quebec when he was young.  Biakabutuka finished his high school career at Montreal’s Vanier College and was hotly recruited.  Michigan won the recruitment battle, and reaped the rewards for the next three years until he turned pro after the 1995 season.  During his final year at Michigan, Biakabutuka set the single-season rushing record for the Wolverines with 1,818 yards.  He averaged 6.0 yards per carry.  Despite some close calls by the likes of Anthony Thomas, Denard Robinson, Chris Perry, and Mike Hart, Biakabutuka’s 1995 season remains the standard by which all other Michigan runners are judged.  “Touchdown Tim” saved his best work for last and took his game to another level against Ohio State.  The 1995 version of The Game featured an unbeaten Ohio State team led by eventual Heisman Trophy winner Eddie George.  Biakabutuka ran behind a dominant line and finished the game with 313 yards on 37 carries; Michigan won 31-23.  Highlights of the game can be found here.  It is the best game I’ve ever seen from a Michigan runner.  The commentators ran out of things to say about him by the end of the contest.  Take a look if you haven’t seen the highlights.  The Panthers drafted Biakabutuka 8th overall in the 1996 NFL Draft.  

2. Alain Kashama, Vieux Montreal.  Kashama is actually cousins with Biakabutuka, and, like Biakabutuka, Kashama relocated from central Africa to Canada as a child.  Alain Kashama mostly played as a backup defensive lineman at Michigan, but had some solid performances.  One in particular was the 2003 Outback Bowl in which Kashama recovered a fumble and forced another one.  Highlights of the game can be found here.  Kashama was not drafted, but played sparingly in the NFL for the Bears and Seahawks.  He did find some success, however, in the Canadian Football League, and led the Montreal Alouettes in sacks in 2007.  In an interesting turn after his football career was over, Kashama tried his hand at professional boxing.  Kashama had top flight talent, but also struggled getting on the field at Michigan, and acknowledged this in an interview with the Brampton (Ontario) Guardian in 2011, saying, “The higher the level is, the less fun you have because it’s so serious and right down to business. My best memories playing football are from playing with my brothers in high school and with my friends and stuff, those days were a lot more fun than playing with Michigan and in the NFL.”

3. Renaldo Sagesse, Vieux Montreal.  Although Sagesse attended the same high school as Kashama, they didn’t actually cross paths there, as Sagesse is younger.  Like Kashama, Sagesse mostly saw action as a back up at Michigan, and played in 35 games over his four years.  He was an average player who could get the job done now and then.  I placed him below Kashama on this list mostly because Sagesse couldn’t crack the starting lineup his senior year on the 2010 Michigan defense.  I’m pretty sure I still have actual nightmares of watching that unit play.  Some of the blame for his lack of development surely falls on the defensive coaching during this period at Michigan.  Like Kashama, Sagesse played in the CFL after his time at Michigan, but was cut in 2012 by the Saskatchewan Roughriders.

Unranked:  Neither Benjamin St-Juste nor Luiji Vilain have played a down for the Wolverines, but will be on the roster in the fall.  St-Juste actually attended Vieux Montreal like Kashama and Sagesse, and is a 3 or 4 star recruit depending on which site you trust.  He had a pretty decent spring game, and his TTB Rating is a solid 78.   Vilain finished his high school career in Alexandria, Virginia, but originally hails from Ontario.  He is an explosive athlete and more than one site ranks him as the #1 prospect to come out of Virginia.  His TTB Rating is a promising 84.  There are lots of reasons to be optimistic about these two players, and although it would take a Herculean effort to end up at the top of this list, it isn’t unreasonable to hope that they both end up above Sagesse and Kashama when their careers draw to a close.  

So…is that it?  Biakabutuka, Kashama, and Sagesse were the only Canadian Wolverines I could think of for this column.  If my memory is missing more players, I’d love to know.  

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