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TORONTO — For Brady Oliveira, hard times on the football field have been easy to put into perspective.
The 2024 season got off to a very uncharacteristic start for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. The team that’s played in four consecutive Grey Cups, winning it in 2019 and 2021, went a combined 51-17 over the last four seasons. This year, the club started 0-4 and had a 2-6 record, staring at the backs of the opponents that they’d raced out in front of over the last four seasons.
While the season has been a challenge, especially out of the gates, the Bombers have turned this around and are back in their familiar spot atop the West Division standings. As you can see in Oliveira’s sit down with CFL.ca for its Unreal Stories series, dealing with and breaking through adversity is nothing new for the 2023 Most Outstanding Canadian. Here are some highlights from his Unreal Stories interview.
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TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS
“(There were) lots of trials and tribulations, lots of things that most kids probably don’t go through in a household with a father who was a drug addict, addicted to drugs his entire life,” Oliveira said.
“I always say, ‘What’s my why?’ And it’s always been my mom. Seeing how much of a strong individual that she is and that she was growing up as a kid. The things we went through growing up that we had to see, it instilled a hunger and a drive and a motivation that’s unmatched.
“I talk about this hunger, right? You think of that analogy, you open the fridge and there’s nothing there, being a hungry young boy. Now being a young man, successful and doing great things it’s a blessing. Having it in the back of my mind, continuing with that hunger because that hunger got me where I am today.
“My dad is back in my life now. He’s sober now. It’s still an uphill battle but he’s really enjoying his sobriety and he’s back in my life. I’m really just there to support him. It’s good to know that he’s living a clean lifestyle now and that he’s sober. That’s the biggest thing. My mom instilled those traits into us of, ‘Hey this isn’t what you want and you’re not going to be like that.’”
FOOTBALL AS AN OUTLET AND OPTION
“When I was 13 you start to really understand. I’m getting into football and having this early success in my first year playing football it was like, ‘OK, this could be my way out.’ I used all of that negativity (in life) and put it into football.
“I earned a full ride scholarship, went to the University of North Dakota. It was amazing It was about 2.5 hours from Winnipeg so every game I had family and friends there. It’s like the Bombers now, I have friends and family at every game. That was the same thing in college. My mom came to every single game. My biggest supporter my biggest fan. Fast-forward, I get drafted to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. It was a dream come true, a full circle moment coming back to Winnipeg and playing for my hometown. What else more could I ask for?”
A VOICE FOR THE VOICELESS
“I do tons off the field with different children’s charities and homeless shelters and animal stuff,” Oliveira said.
“When you look at animals and dogs they’re helpless, they’re innocent, they have no voice. Alex, my girlfriend and I, she has a heart of gold, she’s been doing this rescue work way longer than I have, over 10 years. It was just a friendship at first. We had so many common interests and it grew into something special and super organic and it grew into something special. That’s when it’s the best.
“Now I have this soulmate that has all the same passions and beliefs that I do and we get along so well. We do these rescue missions together. (She’s) a massive dog lover and we have a family of three now with three dogs and they’re our everything. When I’m not playing football my mind instantly goes to spending time with our dogs and Alex and taking them on cool adventures and if I have more time, how can we help more dogs in need?
“I love being a voice for the voiceless. (Animals) need us, they need humans to be their voice to step up for them and get them out of the rough situations that they’re in. It’s something I’ll never stop. It’s somethingI’m very passionate about. There’s lots of dogs out there needing forever homes and these dogs need us to be their advocates.”
A PLAYER THAT BATTLED
What I want to be remembered as is a guy who went out there and battled, truly laid it on the line for his teammates every single week, every single game, every single opportunity,” Oliveira said of the legacy he wants to leave as a CFL player.
“Everyday life, whatever I’m doing, it I’m doing it 100 miles an hour, full tilt. You need to embrace those tough times, embrace the grind and that will really catapult you forward. Whatever that takes, embracing the grind, coming together and working every single day and getting the job done.”