Mario Annicchiarico
Edmonton Journal

EDMONTON -- The fight to become a professional athlete in the Canadian Football League is a long, hard battle for players who are, shall we say, vertically challenged.

"Coming out of college, trying different pro workouts for various NFL teams, it was really weird because it seemed like every scout I talked to really liked the way I played the game and the things that I was doing. There was just one knock. I was just too small," said talented Saskatchewan Roughriders receiver Weston Dressler, a North Dakota product who stands five-foot-eight and weighs 165 pounds, soaking wet.

"They couldn't go back and convince the head coach or the staff to bring a guy my size in. It was definitely tough trying to get in somewhere, but luckily the staff here with the Riders had the faith in me and trust in me and I've been here ever since."

Like so many other short talents, he's produced. The CFL's rookie of the year in 2008, Dressler is no slouch when it comes to strapping on his pads.

Edmonton Eskimos return man Tristan Jackson, all of five-foot-eight, is another. Considered to be one of the premiere kick-returners in the league, what Jackson lacks in size he makes up with pure speed.

"It was a struggle when I was younger. Everyone told me I was too small to play high school ball, then I proved people wrong," said Jackson, who grew up in Mississippi. "Then they said I was too small to play college ball and I just continued to work hard. My mom and dad kept me motivated and here I am now.

"Even though I was smaller than virtually everyone, I still looked at it to my advantage because I worked hard. No matter what the obstacle was, I knew I had to prepare myself to be the best I could be no matter how tall other people were. I felt that I had to work out more, be faster or stronger, have more endurance."

The same goes for Eskimos defensive back Bradley Robinson, who is listed at five-foot-eight.

"It was always a dream of mine to play pro football. Me and my brother (Durell, a former Eskimos receiver) grew up watching Monday Night Football. But, being an undersized player, you're fed a lot of obstacles. You're always told you can't do this. You can't do that. You're too small. You're not fast enough. You're not strong enough. I just tried to put that in the back of my mind and worked hard every day," said Robinson.

Pop Warner football, middle school, high school, it mattered not for the Duncan, S. C., native, who went on to play college at Middle Tennessee State.

"When I went to camps, I was always put in the group with the not-so-talented players until I had the chance to prove how much I really had and they would change me later on. Initially, just looking at you, they thought you couldn't compete with the bigger guys," said Robinson.

Despite his size, he had the team's highest vertical--40 inches--and the fastest 40-yard sprint (4.32 seconds).

"My explosiveness is what kept me on the field."

Yet Robinson's height kept him out of the limelight, unlike his brother Durell, who played at the more prestigious University of Georgia as a six-foot-two, 225-pound receiver.

"I think the higher level that you get to, your size became more of a determining factor," said Esks head coach Richie Hall, who played defensive back in the CFL as a man who stood five-foot-six.

"You start getting to high school and college, you get defensive backs that are six-foot-four and DBs that are five-foot-six. What do you do to separate them?They are always going to look for the bigger, faster guy. That doesn't make them the better player, but that's what they're going to see."

Hall never used his stature as an excuse or a roadblock.

"I didn't think it was any tougher for me being a small guy than someone being a larger size, regarding the odds. The tough part was getting someone to look at you and give you an opportunity," he said.

"As people, we tend to judge from what we see, regardless of what work we're in. We formulate an opinion.

"As a coach, it's like,'What can I do for him to look at me on the football field, not as what I do as a five-foot-six person.'

"To some degree, that should be the attitude of a six-foot person. 'What separates me from the next guy competing?'

"The way I look at it is, I have to do something special because, if they get somebody who is six foot who does what I can do, my attitude was they're going to take the six-footer because they're always going to take that size over anything."

It all came down to one clear-cut message as they all battled their way to the CFL, which gives shorter players more opportunity on a wider, longer and definitely more level playing field.

"It's tough being a professional athlete, period," said Hall. "But it's tough as a person because you have to give that coach a reason to keep you.

"Look at the smaller men who were successful, in any sport, be it basketball with a Spud Webb or Muggsy Bogues, or Wayne Gretzky was not a big guy. But he did something that separated himself where you said, 'You know what, there is something special about that guy,' " said Hall.

"Gizmo Williams, Mike 'Pinball' Clemons -- they have their own attributes and all they want is to be given an opportunity to showcase their abilities."

They've all stood tall, especially in the CFL.

Courtesy: www.edmontonjournal.com