Wikipedia

Jermarcus Hardrick

Jermarcus "Yoshi" Hardrick (born May 30, 1990) is an American professional football offensive lineman for the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League (CFL).[1] He is a Grey Cup champion as a member of the 107th Grey Cup champions and is a two-time West Division All-Star receiving the honour in 2017 and 2021.[2] He played college football for the Fort Scott Greyhounds before joining the Nebraska Cornhuskers for two years to finish his college playing eligibility.[3]

Jermarcus Hardrick
No. 51     Saskatchewan Roughriders
Hardrick with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in 2022
Nickname(s)Yoshi
Born: (1990-05-30) May 30, 1990 (age 34)
Batesville, Mississippi, U.S.
Career information
StatusActive
CFL statusAmerican
Position(s)Offensive lineman
Height6 ft 5 in (196 cm)
Weight311 lb (141 kg)
CollegeFort Scott
Nebraska
High schoolSouth Panola
Career history
As player
2012Tampa Bay Buccaneers*
2012New Orleans Saints*
2013Utah Blaze
2014BC Lions
2015Tampa Bay Storm
2015Saskatchewan Roughriders
2016–2023Winnipeg Blue Bombers
2024–presentSaskatchewan Roughriders
*Offseason or practice squad only
Career highlights and awards
CFL All-Star2021, 2023
CFL West All-Star2017, 2021, 2023
Career stats
Games played133
Games started131

Professional career

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Tampa Bay Buccaneers

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Hardrick was originally signed as an undrafted free agent with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on May 7, 2012.[4] He played in three preseason games, but was released with the final cuts on August 31, 2012.[5][4]

New Orleans Saints

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Hardrick later signed a practice roster agreement on November 21, 2012, with the New Orleans Saints and was not re-signed during the following off-season.[4]

Utah Blaze

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Hardrick then spent one season in the Arena Football League (AFL), playing for the Utah Blaze.[6]

BC Lions

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Hardrick signed a practice roster agreement with the BC Lions on July 15, 2014, and played in his first CFL game on July 19, 2014, against the Montreal Alouettes.[1][7] The following week, he made his first career start on July 25, 2014, in a game against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.[2] During the 2014 season, he played in 12 games for the Lions and started in 10 of them.[2] He was released by the Lions on April 29, 2015.[8]

Tampa Bay Storm

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After being released, Hardrick returned to the AFL with the Tampa Bay Storm, joining them on June 5, 2015, but stayed with the team for only two games.[6] On June 18, 2015, it was announced that Hardrick had signed with the Saskatchewan Roughriders just prior to the team's second preseason game.[8][9]

Saskatchewan Roughriders (first stint)

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Hardrick was released shortly after, but was signed to the team's practice roster on August 20, 2015.[8] He was promoted to the active roster for the September 6, 2015 game against the Blue Bombers where the Roughriders earned their first win of a difficult season.[8] He dressed and started in eight games to end the 2015 season.[2] He was released by the Roughriders on February 16, 2016.[10]

Winnipeg Blue Bombers

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One day after his release from the Roughriders, Hardrick signed with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers on February 17, 2016.[11] For the 2016 season, he played and started in 16 regular season games as the Blue Bombers qualified for the playoffs for the first time since 2011.[2] He also started a trend for home games at IG Field when the lineman, weighing 314 pounds (142 kg), jumped into the stands following a touchdown. The crowd celebration would become known as the "Hardrick Hop" or "Hardrick Leap".[12]

In 2017, Hardrick started all 18 regular season games at right tackle and was named a CFL West All-star.[13] He signed a one-year contract extension at the end of the season on November 16, 2017.[14] For the 2018 season, he missed three games due to injury, but started in the other 15 regular season games.[2] He started in both of the Blue Bomber's playoff games, as Winnipeg lost the West Final to the Calgary Stampeders.[2] He signed a one-year extension on November 28, 2018.[15]

The 2019 Winnipeg Blue Bombers season saw Hardrick start at right tackle for all 18 regular season games as the team led the league in rushing yards.[2][16] He also started in all three of the Blue Bombers' post-season games and he won his first Grey Cup championship in 107th Grey Cup victory over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.[17]

In the following off-season, Hardrick signed a one-year extension on December 14, 2019, to play with the team for the 2020 season.[17] However, the 2020 CFL season was cancelled, so he signed another one-year extension on December 30, 2020.[18] Hardrick again anchored the right side of the line as Winnipeg went on to led the CFL in wins during the regular season. They would defeat Saskatchewan in the semi-finals to go to a Grey Cup rematch with Hamilton. In the 2021 Grey Cup the Bombers trailed 22-10 but Hardrick helped build a clean pocket as the Bombers would come back to win 33-25 in overtime for their second Grey Cup championship in a row. For his great play throughout the season, Hardrick was named a CFL All-Star and CFL West All-Star for the first time in his career.

Hardrick then signed a one-year contract extension at $150,000 for the year to stay in Winnipeg for the 2022 CFL season.[19]

Hardrick became a free agent upon the expiry of his contract on February 13, 2024.[20]

Saskatchewan Roughriders (second stint)

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On February 5, 2024, during the CFL's Free Agency communication window, it was reported that once the free agent market officially opens on February 13, Hardrick would be signing a two-year contract with the Saskatchewan Roughriders.[21] On February 13, the Roughriders confirmed that Hardrick had signed a two-year contract with the team.[22]

Personal life

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Hardrick was born and grew up in the small town of Courtland, Mississippi, population 350. The town was very small and did not have a lot of opportunity for its residents, the town had no paved roads, aside from the highway, and most residents lived in trailers.[23] His birth father went to prison when Hardrick was three, he had fathered 17 children in Courtland with different women, and was rarely seen in his life.[23] Hardrick's best friend growing up was a boy named Mario Lewis; because the two were always together, people began calling Hardrick "Yoshi", a reference to the characters Mario and Yoshi from the Mario franchise of video games.[23] The two would later find out they were half-brothers.[23] He met his wife Samantha at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, where she was competing as a track athlete, and together they have three children, living at their home in Lincoln during the off-season.[23][19]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Jemarcus Hardrick". Canadian Football League. Retrieved November 4, 2017.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h "Jermarcus Hardrick". Winnipeg Blue Bombers. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
  3. ^ "Former Huskers' Jermarcus "Yoshi" Hardrick Fulfills Dream, Becomes First-Generation Graduate". Omaha.com. May 6, 2019. Retrieved November 30, 2019.
  4. ^ a b c "Jermarcus Hardrick". nfl.com. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
  5. ^ "Jermarcus Hardrick". tsn.ca. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
  6. ^ a b "Storm Continues to Add to Offensive Line". ArenaFan.com. June 5, 2015.
  7. ^ "Transactions – Football player trades and signings 2014". Canadian Football League. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
  8. ^ a b c d "Transactions – Football player trades and signings 2015". Canadian Football League. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
  9. ^ "Saskatchewan Roughriders take on the Calgary Stampeders in second preseason game". Saskatchewan Roughriders. June 18, 2015. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
  10. ^ "Transactions – Football player trades and signings 2016". Canadian Football League. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
  11. ^ "Bombers sign Jermarcus Hardrick, release Zach Anderson". Winnipeg Blue Bombers. February 17, 2016. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
  12. ^ Judy Owen (September 21, 2016). "Hulking offensive linemen find unique way to celebrate during Bombers' surge". CBC Manitoba. Retrieved November 29, 2019.
  13. ^ "Seven Bombers on West all-star team". Winnipeg Free Press. November 8, 2017. Retrieved June 23, 2018.
  14. ^ "Bombers Re-sign Offensive Linemen Patrick Neufeld and Jermarcus Hardrick". Winnipeg Blue Bombers. November 16, 2017.
  15. ^ "Blue Bombers sign OT Hardrick to one-year extension". TSN. November 28, 2018.
  16. ^ "2019 CFL statistics" (PDF). Canadian Football League. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
  17. ^ a b Ted Wyman (December 14, 2019). "Bombers re-sign veteran offensive lineman Jermarcus Hardrick". Winnipeg Sun.
  18. ^ "Blue Bombers agree to terms with Jermarcus Hardrick". BlueBombers.com. December 30, 2020. Retrieved December 30, 2020.
  19. ^ a b John Hodge (January 7, 2022). "Bombers' OL Jermarcus Hardrick gets well-earned raise but still prioritizes team with contract extension". 3DownNation.com.
  20. ^ "Official 2024 Free Agent Tracker". Canadian Football League. Retrieved February 14, 2024.
  21. ^ "Report: All-Star OT Jermarcus Hardrick headed to Riders". CFL.ca. February 5, 2024. Retrieved February 6, 2024.
  22. ^ "Riders Bring 'outstanding' Offensive Lineman Jermarcus Hardrick To Saskatchewan". Saskatchewan Roughriders. February 13, 2024. Retrieved February 13, 2024.
  23. ^ a b c d e Ed Tait (May 7, 2019). "Long Read: The Other Side of Jermarcus Hardrick". Winnipeg Blue Bombers. Retrieved November 30, 2019.
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