Lowell Ullrich
The Province

VANCOUVER -- The value of an impressive stat line on a football resume has always been obvious to Jamall Lee.

The same goes for one which doesn't look so good, and one rushing carry resulting in a loss of one yard doesn't exactly appear dazzling, especially when it's your first chance against similar competition.

There was only one thing the Port Coquitlam running back could do when he failed to get a decent look in an all-star game featuring U.S. college seniors in El Paso, Tex., in January. Lee could only win a battle against a stopwatch.

And by being measured in a manner that can't be controlled by an offensive coordinator unwilling to give him another run or two, the Terry Fox graduate who dominated CIS play for four seasons at Bishop's University is about to make this weekend's NFL draft a bit more interesting.

Lee ran a 40-yard dash in 4.39 seconds and recorded a 44-inch vertical leap at a CFL evaluation camp in March, and the NFL noticed. Eight teams called to request game tape, and while that would hardly ensure he'll even be signed as a priority free agent after the draft it does prove some stats are more valuable than others.

Speed, after all, can't be coached, and Lee's 40-yard time beat every running back tested at this year's NFL combine.

"At the time it hurt," Lee said of being ignored in the invitation-only all-star contest, which resulted in 18 players being drafted by NFL clubs after the 2008 game.

"But after about 20 minutes I was thinking that a lot of other Canadians aren't ever even in that position. I just went back and started working harder."

He may have been treated like an outsider in the U.S. but Lee had piled up big numbers at Bishop's, a smallish school in Lennoxville, Que. The 6'1", 225-pounder twice led all CIS schools during his career in rushing, averaging 6.6 yards per carry last season.

The knock, familiar to anyone with an inferiority complex, is that the numbers weren't recorded against NCAA competition.

"I really wish more of these teams would take a closer look at some of the athletes in Canada, even the CFL people," said Bishop's coach Leroy Blugh. "The coaching is better than ever. It's just we're not packaged on ABC."

Blugh played 15 years in the CFL as a defensive lineman, mostly with the Edmonton Eskimos, and what he couldn't advise his young runner about what lies ahead could easily be filled in by Lee's father.

Former SFU and Ottawa great Orville Lee became only the second non-import back in league history to rush for over 1,000 yards in 1988, and with that pedigree it does not take a scouting genius to realize his son will be a top pick in the CFL draft, which goes next weekend.

Ranked second by the CFL Scouting Bureau, Lee may not even be available when the Lions make the first of three straight opening-round picks at fourth overall, which is why coach Wally Buono has reportedly been trying to trade up in recent weeks.

In the middle of it all is a 22-year-old running back who not only is already benefitting from sage advice but perspective gained from an all-star game in which Lee and the ball were virtual strangers.

"Coach Blugh and my dad both said they know I'm going to be nervous but in a couple of months you'll be looking back and laughing at how nervous you were," Lee said. "[The draft] is a big deal but never show it and don't act like it's bigger than it actually is."

When trying to assess a future career path, that might be the best measuring stick of all.

Courtesy: www.vancouverprovince.com