WINNIPEG — Chris Garrett knows what it’s like to wait his turn.
Whether it was on the football field or in the classroom at a military prep school, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers new starting running back has learned patience and discipline.
It paid off last month when Garrett got the chance to replace Fred Reid and backup Carl Volny after the pair suffered season-ending knee injuries in a Sept. 24 loss to Toronto.
In his first game, the five-foot-eight, 185-pound native of Utica, N.Y., carried 11 times for 76 yards, including a 32-yard touchdown run in a loss to Montreal.
He boosted his output last week, chalking up the team’s first 100-yard rushing game of the season with 131 yards on 18 carries in a win over Hamilton that clinched a playoff spot for the Bombers (9-5) for the first time since 2008.
“Every level I’ve ever played at, I’ve always had to prove myself ...” Garrett said after the Bombers practised Thursday for their Saturday game in Edmonton (8-6).
“The road that I’ve taken to get where I’m at is very unfortunate, for Carl and Fred to go down, but I have my goals and I stick to them. And it seems like every road I’ve went down I’ve always stuck it out and at the back end of it I’ve always got the chance and I’ve made the most of it.”
Even Garrett’s path to get on the Bombers roster wasn’t a smooth one.
The Ohio University tailback signed with Winnipeg as a free agent in September 2010, mainly as a kick returner. He was Ohio’s all-time leader in kick return average (26.7 yards) and kick return yards (2,063).
He dressed for five games and rushed 19 times for 113 yards and took seven kickoffs back for 139 yards.
He attended Bombers training camp this year, but was cut after the team went with returner Perry Floyd. When Floyd was released in August, Garrett was re-signed.
With such an unpredictable track record, it was no wonder Garrett’s mother, Alfreda Brown, and grandmother, Josephine Jackson, drove to Hamilton from New York to see him play in a pro game for the first time.
The only child gave the game ball to his teary-eyed mom.
“It was a very good experience for both of them to see me still playing and to be living my dream,” said Garrett, 24, adding his dad plans to attend a game later this season.
He credits his patience and determination to the year he spent at Fork Union Military Academy, a Virginia boarding school he attended to get his test scores up so he could go to college.
“It showed me a different life — how to act in certain situations, just be disciplined in the classroom, in life and even on the field,” Garrett said.
“It was tough, but I learned a lot from it and it made me a better person.”
Bombers head coach Paul LaPolice said Garrett has done a pretty good job in two games.
“I would say he is very patient,” LaPolice said. “He waits to see (where the holes open).
“Sometimes when you run right up into those (defenders), you don’t set up your blocks.”
Right guard Steve Morley said Garrett is strong and really good at reading the holes he can explode through.
“I think all the O-line guys are confident in Chris Garrett,” Morley said. “He’s a hard worker. He’s in here every day early and stays late learning the offence and reading the opposing team.”
The CFL has a tradition that a running back who rushes for more than 100 yards in a game shows his thanks to the offensive line, usually by picking up the tab for a meal.
Morley said he and the other hogs don’t expect that from Garrett.
“We know his situation. He’s been unemployed for a while so you can’t expect too much from the guy,” he said with a smile.
Garrett said he’ll be showing his appreciation soon.