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Archive Record
Images
Metadata
Object ID |
2016.2.1 |
Object Name |
Video Recording |
Title |
Michael "Pinball" Clemons Interview |
Interview Summary / Résumé d'entrevue |
Michael "Pinball" Clemons, Order of Sport recipient, inducted in 2016, born in Dunedin, Florida, talks about how he began playing football, his successes, challenges, values, coaching for the Toronto Argonauts and lessons for youth. Michael describes his height as one of the major obstacles he faced in his career. He explains in the interview how, early on, he was told so often and repeatedly that he was too small to play professionally that he almost convinced himself of the same thing. His counterargument is, "What they say doesn't matter; what you do matters." Michael describes his accomplishments on the field but emphatically attributes his successes to his team and the fact that he was one of twelve teammates on the field. He considers his most significant accomplishment as being a good teammate, and he is most proud of it. He talks about not paying naysayers any attention. Michael describes moving to Canada and transitioning from the NFL to the CFL. He quickly fell in love with the way Canadian football is played. Michael describes the roles of the running back position and explains how football taught him to push beyond what he thought his limits were. Michael talks about post-retirement and coaching for the Toronto Argonauts. He explains the importance of surrounding yourself with supporters and putting in the effort. Michael talks about being inspired by his single mother's selflessness. Michael's Christian faith influenced what kind of player and coach he wanted to be. He also talks about the importance of giving back to community. Michael is humble and grateful for his induction into Canada's Sports Hall of Fame. Entrevue avec Michael " Pinball " Clemons, 2016. MP4 d'origine numérique, temps de visionnement : 00:27:13. Michael " Pinball " Clemons, récipiendaire de l'Ordre du sport, a été intronisé en 2016 et est né à Dunedin, en Floride. Il parle de comment il a commencé à jouer au football, de ses succès, de ses défis, de ses valeurs, de son expérience à titre d'entraîneur des Argonauts de Toronto et il partage ses leçons pour les jeunes. Michael dit que sa taille est l'un des plus grands obstacles auxquels il a fait face pendant sa carrière. Pendant l'entrevue, il explique comment, très tôt, on lui a si souvent dit et répété qu'il était trop petit pour jouer au niveau professionnel qu'il en a presque été convaincu lui-même. Son contre-argument à cette affirmation, c'est : " Ce qu'ils disent n'a pas d'importance, c'est ce que toi tu fais qui compte ". Michael décrit ses réalisations sur le terrain mais attribue catégoriquement ses succès à son équipe et au fait qu'il était l'un de douze coéquipiers sur le terrain. Il considère que sa plus grande réalisation c'est d'avoir été un bon coéquipier, et il en est très fier. Il dit qu'il ne faisait pas attention aux détracteurs et aux commentaires négatifs. Michael raconte comment il est déménagé au Canada et comment il est passé de la NFL à la LCF. Il est rapidement tombé en amour avec le style de jeu du football canadien. Michael décrit les rôles de la position de porteur de ballon (running back) et explique comment le football lui a enseigné à repousser ce qu'il croyait être ses propres limites. Michael parle de la vie après la retraite du football et de son expérience comme entraîneur des Argonauts de Toronto. Il explique l'importance de s'entourer de gens qui vous appuient et d'investir des efforts dans ce qu'on fait. Il dit avoir été inspiré par le don de soi et le dévouement de sa mère monoparentale. La foi chrétienne de Michael a influencé le type de joueur et d'entraîneur qu'il voulait devenir. Il parle aussi de l'importance de redonner à la communauté. Michael est humble et il est très reconnaissant d'avoir été intronisé au Panthéon des sports canadiens. |
Scope & Content |
Michael "Pinball" Clemons interview, 2016. Born digital MP4, viewing time 00:27:13. 00:00:38Michael Clemons - he was eight years old when he first started in sports; he could not wait to turn eight because that was the age when children could play organized football; when his mother took him in to register, they did not believe that he was eight years old because he was still a little small; his mother had to show them his birth certificate to prove that he really was eight; they advised her that she should bring him back when he was a little bigger, however she was persistent and they were finally convinced to register him so he could play 00:01:19Growing up in Florida, football was the number one sport; Michael could not remember a time when he did not love football because it was what he grew up doing; on his first day playing football, he felt like he was in a band because his equipment was so big and it made too much noise every time he ran down the field 00:01:59The biggest challenges in his career as an athlete: he always found his size to be a challenge because he was small; he enjoyed playing all kinds of sports so choosing a sport to play was a challenge; he also grew up to a single parent; his greatest challenge to this day is himself; "My greatest enemy is in me, it is my challenge. If I could be disciplined and do the things that I am supposed to do…The quality of my life will be directly proportional to the decisions that I make…Your life is up to you. It is your decisions, what you do, the choices you make" 00:03:30What he considers his greatest accomplishment: he believes his greatest accomplishment as a football player was being a good teammate, that was what he was most proud of 00:04:32On overcoming naysayers or individuals who doubted his abilities: he never put any mind to the negative comments from other people, he just really loved to play football; by the time he started university, it was already in his mind that he was probably too small but he still went for it and he succeeded; to him, it was all about doing what he loved and doing it at the best of his abilities 00:05:32He played in the NFL for a year with Kansas City Chiefs and 12 years in CFL with the Toronto Argonauts 00:06:08"When you go out and do it, they do not have any influence on the results. What they say does not matter, what you do does matter, and that is all the difference in the world" 00:06:20After playing for the NFL, he got a job offer down in Florida but he was not sure if got football out of his system yet; he decided to go up to Canada to play for maybe a couple years; on the first day of training camp with Toronto Argonauts, he witnessed Darrell K. Smith and Doran Major challenging each other on the field; he thought coming to Canada, the competitive level would not be as great; after seeing the football games in CFL, he believes that "football in Canada is football at its best" 00:08:17What inspired him to play the running back position and how he managed to get up every time after he got tackled: when he was younger, they played a game called "Kill The Carrier" where they threw a ball and someone had to catch it, whoever caught the ball would get tackled; in order for him to avoid that, he had to learn to be a good runner and he got better at that; getting knocked down to the ground was painful sometimes, but what got him going is seeing the shocked look on the opponent's face whenever he got back up 00:10:20"What football has taught me is that I am capable of more than what I would have ever thought"; football has taught him to push beyond his limits and because of that, he found that "the human spirit is the world's greatest super hero"; "We are capable of much more than we ever think. There is more in you." 00:10:56What he is most proud of in his career in football: he is most proud of the fact that he has played with men who have become great citizens; "Playing professional football is not something that the majority of people have an opportunity to do, and in many ways it is a gift" 00:13:15After retiring from his playing career, he went on to become Head Coach for the Toronto Argonauts in 2000; "In life when there are some things that look like they are bigger than you, do your best to surround yourself with the best people you can to help you to accomplish that. Nothing great has ever been done alone." 00:16:10"Work hard…learn, get into your particular interest, and get to know, understand, have a plan, be ready, but more than that, be a good person. That is what life is about." 00:16:27Why giving back to the community is important to him: the whole concept of giving can be directly traced back to his mother and his upbringing; they did not have a lot when he was growing up but his mother was always giving; "People are our community's greatest resource, and if all we do is take as people, our community will become depleted. It is imperative, it is a responsibility for us, if we are going to have healthy communities, to give back to our community"; "I truly believe that the essence of life is giving" 00:18:21Values that were most important to him in his journey: his mother raised him in a Christian family and faith was very important; "I believe the greatest manifestation of the love of God is how you treat people" 00:19:56Lessons or message that could help youth in their life today: "One thing that I think is most important is to take care of today. Take care of today and tomorrow will take care of itself." 00:22:09What it means to him to be inducted into Canada's Sports Hall of Fame: he is a little embarrassed receiving this honour because there were other men out in the football field with him who did just as much work; he wants to give recognition to those men and a bigger thank you to Canada; "I am so infinitely grateful, and I feel that Toronto and the greater Canada has helped me to achieve all the dreams I had as a kid, and yet you keep giving me things. I love it and I appreciate it but I am embarrassed to take more. My life is so fulfilled and I am grateful." |
Date |
2016/07/12 |
Year Range from |
1994 |
Year Range to |
2000 |
People |
Clemons, Michael Smith, Darrell K. Major, Doran |
Search Terms |
Michael Clemons Interview Football Grey Cup NFL National Football League CFL Canadian Football League Kansas City Chiefs Toronto Argonauts |