BUILT FOR THIS: Alonzo Addae presented by Vodkow

Rejection nothing more than fuel for REDBLACKS’ Alonzo Addae

In a different timeline, Ottawa REDBLACKS safety Alonzo Addae may have been anchoring the left side of the field for the Canadian Men’s National Soccer Team along with Alphonso Davies.

In his youth, Addae played both kinds of football for St. Mary’s High School in Pickering, Ontario. On the gridiron, he was a threat on both sides of the ball, becoming a ball-hawking defensive back, picking off 10 passes as a senior, and contributing 14 touchdowns offensively.

When he switched from football cleats to football boots, Addae typically played either left midfield, or left back, building an intriguing mix of talents to the table.

The opportunity to play both sports is something Addae attributes to others around him, and if he had a time machine and was able to change it all, he wouldn’t even think about it.

“We had a good football scene in Pickering, but to be honest, the soccer culture was the biggest thing,” Addae said. “My dad came from Ghana when he was 16, so football to him is soccer.”

There came a point, however, where he needed to make a choice. Addae’s grandfather, Willie Bethea won three Grey Cups with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in the ‘60s, and both of his brothers, Jahmile and Jahleel, have NFL experience, with Jahmile currently coaching NCAA football with the University of Miami.

With all of that history in mind, Addae knew the right answer to his dilemma.

“I have a rich tradition of football in my family,” Addae said. “It has always been a part of the family, and I wanted to leave my own mark, my own legacy and carry on from where my family members were.”

To this day, soccer is having a positive impact on Addae, however. He learned skills he wouldn’t otherwise have, and is still using them on a day-to-day basis with the REDBLACKS.

“My footwork, especially playing defensive back,” Addae said. “I don’t have to think as much going in and out of my breaks, and that’s definitely a credit to soccer. Cardio, as well. Being able to run for 90 plus minutes in soccer isn’t easy, and coming to football, that helped me.”

After graduating from St. Mary’s, Addae made the jump to the United States, where he attended Peddie School, a prep school in Hightstown, New Jersey. He wasn’t entirely new to the American game, having been called to represent Canada in the International Bowl, but it was the first time Addae was living away from home, and in a different country.

Peddie school offered Addae something he couldn’t find in Canada at the time, and even if it wasn’t always easy, it was a pivotal point in his young football career.

“Going to the States was all about wanting that opportunity to play Division 1 football,” Addae said. “When I was in Pickering, I had schools come to me and say they wanted to see me play against Americans for a full year, so I went to Peddie strictly as a recruiting tool.”

It also offered Addae a glimpse of what things would be like at the next level.

“Playing football in high school, once the season was done, that was it,” Addae said. “When I went to Peddie School, it was a year-round program. Hitting the weights early in the morning, film study, doing recruiting prep and things like that, so it felt like I had a lot more support working to get me where I wanted to be.”

His time in prep school was successful. Addae once again played on both sides of the ball, snagging four interceptions, adding 12 house calls offensively, and was named to All-MAPL first team and NJ.com 2015 All-Prep first team, but it wasn’t enough for many schools.

Addae once again needed to prove himself, and attended the University of New Hampshire for three seasons, where he would redshirt his first year. In 2018, he finally got his break. Addae entered the transfer portal, and eventually made the move to West Virginia, where he grew up seeing Jahmile play.

The moment, of course, was surreal when Addae finally stepped on the field in 2020 after red-shirting in 2019, and only became more so as fans were allowed back into Milan Puskar Stadium.

“I was in Pickering with maybe 100 people watching my games, and now I’m playing on ESPN and playing in front of 60,000 people,” Addae said. “I thank God for the opportunity.”

Feeling like he conquered the world, Addae graduated in 2021, setting his sights on the NFL. As the Draft went on, his phone didn’t ring, and after an invite to Cardinals mini-camp didn’t play out in his favour, Addae was once again left disappointed.

In the same way that Peddie School and New Hampshire were there for Addae in the past, the REDBLACKS, who used the 13th overall pick in the 2021 CFL Draft, was right there waiting for him, knowing they were getting a kid who had something to prove.

“It all happened fast,” Addae said. “I played my last Bowl Game in Arizona, I trained in California for three months before going to Arizona Cardinals mini-camp, but I didn’t get signed. I came home for a week and signed with Ottawa, and we were already in the preseason. I never even really had time to sit in my disappointment. I had to pivot and refocus.”

Addae says the transition wasn’t as easy as many would have expected the homecoming to be, but believes he couldn’t have ended up in a better spot.

“It was probably more of a culture shock coming back [to Canada],” Addae said. “I had spent probably seven years in the States, and coming back was different. After the first month, it was love, especially being just three hours from home. My family is able to see me a lot more, so I’m super happy to be here.”