The Saskatchewan Roughriders' G.J. Kinne is able to put football in perspective
Saskatchewan Roughriders quarterback G.J. Kinne takes professional football’s inherent uncertainty in stride — knowing from personal experience that there is more to life than wins and losses, or touchdowns and turnovers.
Gary Joe Kinne III was a few months away from his sophomore season at Texas-based Canton High School when his father — the football team’s head coach — was shot in the stomach by one of the players’ parents.
The elder Kinne was given a 10-per-cent chance of surviving, but he pulled through.
Gary Joseph Kinne is still coaching high school football, in fact. And, from time to time, his proud son is still asked to discuss a horrifying incident that took place on April 7, 2005.
“It was definitely a unique thing that happened,’’ says Kinne, 27. “Your dad’s your coach and then you’re getting ready for a track meet and you hear that someone shoots your dad. That’s kind of crazy.
“It was one of those things where it made me grow up a lot faster. I was only 15 at the time. I had to kind of take care of things at home and on the practice field.
“I was almost like a player-coach, really. I was only a sophomore, but I started as a freshman so I was kind of the leader of the team. We went 12-2 the next year.
“It was one of those things where you never want that to happen, obviously. It’s the worst thing I’ve ever been through, but I was able to overcome it and my dad’s obviously the toughest guy I’ve ever met.”
G.J.’s own toughness is also impressive.
After being taken into protective custody following the shooting, he was erroneously informed that his father had died. Instead, Coach Kinne was in critical condition in hospital in Tyler, Texas. He was hospitalized for nearly 100 days, during which he required repeated surgeries.
“I just wanted my dad to be OK,” G.J. Kinne says. “That was our main focus.”
Kinne’s father returned to coaching in time for the 2005 football season, after which he was named the Adams USA National Coach of the Year.
Jeffrey Doyle Robertson, who was apprehended on the same day as the shooting, is serving a 20-year prison sentence.
Thankfully, the younger Kinne is able to focus on other matters — his family story becoming topical from time to time, usually when it is raised by a reporter.
Kinne is personable and happy to talk. He likely suspects that some of the questions will pertain to a chapter of his life that he would rather forget, but he handles the situation like a pro.
Pro football has taken him to various places, where he has played assorted positions.
There have been NFL stints with the New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles and New York Giants, along with stops in the Arena Football League and United Football League.
Earlier in June, Kinne landed in Calgary and joined the Stampeders, who had just released two-year veteran quarterback Bryant Moniz. After a brief stay in Calgary, Kinne joined the Roughriders. His signing, like that of Moniz, was announced on Saturday.
“I’m very thankful to be here,’’ Kinne says. “Every opportunity is the same. I go out there and give it my all every day and compete in practice and see where it goes.”
Kinne seems like a perfect fit for the Chris Jones-coached Roughriders. Jones is a proponent of versatility, which is among Kinne’s traits.
He spent parts of the 2013 and 2014 seasons on Philadelphia’s practice squad before trying out for the Eagles as a receiver last year. In addition, he saw some duty as a running back.
Leading up to the 2015 season, Kinne was claimed by the Giants and moved to safety — one more indication of his athleticism and adaptability.
Now, a couple of more stops along the football trail, he is in Saskatchewan and part of a quarterbacking equation that also includes Moniz, Darian Durant, B.J. Coleman and Phillip Sims, the latter of whom is on the six-game injured list.
As much as Kinne is anxious to help the team in any way, he is especially pleased to be playing quarterback again.
“That was the reason I wanted to come here in the beginning — to get a chance to play and get a chance to learn from Doubles (Durant), a guy who is probably a Hall of Fame quarterback in this league,” Kinne says. “Getting a chance to learn from him and these coaches, it was a big.”
Perhaps tradition is on Kinne’s side. He was an NCAA star with the University of Tulsa Golden Hurricane, which produced one of the Roughriders’ all-time legends.
Glenn Dobbs was a phenomenally popular quarterback with the Roughriders in the early 1950s, to the extent that Regina was dubbed “Dobberville.”
Dobbs, a Tulsa grad, went on to coach the Golden Hurricane. The Tulsa campus includes Glenn Dobbs Drive. A statue paying tribute to Dobbs is located outside the school’s football stadium.
“He’s definitely a legend in Tulsa and a legend here,” Kinne says with a smile. “Tulsa guys are everywhere.”
From the Regina Leader Post
Saskatchewan Roughriders quarterback G.J. Kinne takes professional football’s inherent uncertainty in stride — knowing from personal experience that there is more to life than wins and losses, or touchdowns and turnovers.
Gary Joe Kinne III was a few months away from his sophomore season at Texas-based Canton High School when his father — the football team’s head coach — was shot in the stomach by one of the players’ parents.
The elder Kinne was given a 10-per-cent chance of surviving, but he pulled through.
Gary Joseph Kinne is still coaching high school football, in fact. And, from time to time, his proud son is still asked to discuss a horrifying incident that took place on April 7, 2005.
“It was definitely a unique thing that happened,’’ says Kinne, 27. “Your dad’s your coach and then you’re getting ready for a track meet and you hear that someone shoots your dad. That’s kind of crazy.
“It was one of those things where it made me grow up a lot faster. I was only 15 at the time. I had to kind of take care of things at home and on the practice field.
“I was almost like a player-coach, really. I was only a sophomore, but I started as a freshman so I was kind of the leader of the team. We went 12-2 the next year.
“It was one of those things where you never want that to happen, obviously. It’s the worst thing I’ve ever been through, but I was able to overcome it and my dad’s obviously the toughest guy I’ve ever met.”
G.J.’s own toughness is also impressive.
After being taken into protective custody following the shooting, he was erroneously informed that his father had died. Instead, Coach Kinne was in critical condition in hospital in Tyler, Texas. He was hospitalized for nearly 100 days, during which he required repeated surgeries.
“I just wanted my dad to be OK,” G.J. Kinne says. “That was our main focus.”
Kinne’s father returned to coaching in time for the 2005 football season, after which he was named the Adams USA National Coach of the Year.
Jeffrey Doyle Robertson, who was apprehended on the same day as the shooting, is serving a 20-year prison sentence.
Thankfully, the younger Kinne is able to focus on other matters — his family story becoming topical from time to time, usually when it is raised by a reporter.
Kinne is personable and happy to talk. He likely suspects that some of the questions will pertain to a chapter of his life that he would rather forget, but he handles the situation like a pro.
Pro football has taken him to various places, where he has played assorted positions.
There have been NFL stints with the New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles and New York Giants, along with stops in the Arena Football League and United Football League.
Earlier in June, Kinne landed in Calgary and joined the Stampeders, who had just released two-year veteran quarterback Bryant Moniz. After a brief stay in Calgary, Kinne joined the Roughriders. His signing, like that of Moniz, was announced on Saturday.
“I’m very thankful to be here,’’ Kinne says. “Every opportunity is the same. I go out there and give it my all every day and compete in practice and see where it goes.”
Kinne seems like a perfect fit for the Chris Jones-coached Roughriders. Jones is a proponent of versatility, which is among Kinne’s traits.
He spent parts of the 2013 and 2014 seasons on Philadelphia’s practice squad before trying out for the Eagles as a receiver last year. In addition, he saw some duty as a running back.
Leading up to the 2015 season, Kinne was claimed by the Giants and moved to safety — one more indication of his athleticism and adaptability.
Now, a couple of more stops along the football trail, he is in Saskatchewan and part of a quarterbacking equation that also includes Moniz, Darian Durant, B.J. Coleman and Phillip Sims, the latter of whom is on the six-game injured list.
As much as Kinne is anxious to help the team in any way, he is especially pleased to be playing quarterback again.
“That was the reason I wanted to come here in the beginning — to get a chance to play and get a chance to learn from Doubles (Durant), a guy who is probably a Hall of Fame quarterback in this league,” Kinne says. “Getting a chance to learn from him and these coaches, it was a big.”
Perhaps tradition is on Kinne’s side. He was an NCAA star with the University of Tulsa Golden Hurricane, which produced one of the Roughriders’ all-time legends.
Glenn Dobbs was a phenomenally popular quarterback with the Roughriders in the early 1950s, to the extent that Regina was dubbed “Dobberville.”
Dobbs, a Tulsa grad, went on to coach the Golden Hurricane. The Tulsa campus includes Glenn Dobbs Drive. A statue paying tribute to Dobbs is located outside the school’s football stadium.
“He’s definitely a legend in Tulsa and a legend here,” Kinne says with a smile. “Tulsa guys are everywhere.”
From the Regina Leader Post
