[LINK] "Michael Sam first openly gay CFL player as he joins Alouettes"

[rfmcdonald]

The Toronto Star reported that out college football star Michael Sam will be playing for the CFL's Montreal Alouettes.

Friday morning the former U.S. college football star and NFL draftee signed with the Montreal Alouettes, becoming the CFL’s first openly gay player. Financial terms of the two-year deal weren’t released.

“I am very excited and proud to join the Montreal Alouettes,” Sam said in a statement released by the team. “I cannot wait to put on the pads, get back on the field and work hard each and every day with my teammates to bring a Grey Cup to the great fans here in Montreal.”

Sam arrives in Montreal after being drafted by the St. Louis Rams, then spending the bulk of the 2014 season on the Dallas Cowboys practice squad.

And his signing comes two years into the CFL’s partnership with You Can Play, an advocacy group that works to foster inclusion for homosexuals in sport. Executive director Wade Davis says the agreement didn’t influence Sam’s signing, but thinks the relationship will help smooth Sam’s transition to the league.

“It speaks to the CFL being proactive and not reactive,” says Davis, a former NFL player who came out as gay after he retired. “The important thing now is that these conversations are being had. It’s really transformative.”