Date of birth 1965-02-28 College Guelph Education University of Guelph CFL status National Role American football player | Status Retired Name Dan Wicklum Place of birth Edmonton, Alberta CFL draft 1988 / Round: 1 Positions Linebacker | |
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Dan Wicklum (born February 28, 1965 in Edmonton, Alberta) is a former Canadian Football League (CFL) football player who played for four seasons with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and the Calgary Stampeders.
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Early life
Wicklum was raised in Perth, Ontario, in the Ottawa Valley, and attended St. John Catholic School and Perth and District Collegiate Institute. He played football with the Ottawa Sooners of the Canadian Junior Football League. After high school graduation, he entered the University of Guelph and received a B.S. in biology in 1990. He played football with the Guelph Gryphons winning the Vanier Cup in 1984 and named an OUAA All-Star in 1987, setting the Guelph record with 119 total tackles in the season. In 2002, Wicklum was named to the Guelph's Athletics hall of fame.
Professional career
The CFL's Winnipeg Blue Bombers drafted him in the first round of the 1988 Canadian College Draft. Securing a starting linebacker role, Wicklum went on to help the team win the Grey Cup in 1988. In 1989, the Calgary Stampeders selected him as the first Canadian player in an equalization draft. He then played three seasons for the Stampeders and named Calgary's special teams Player of the Year twice. There was some controversy in 1991 when a late hit by Wicklum on Toronto's marquee player Rocket Ismail caused Ismail to be hospitalised for a concussion. Ismail had already been tackled while returning a punt when Wicklum drove his helmet into Ismail's shoulder and neck. Wicklum was assessed a spearing penalty but was not ejected.
Post football career
After retiring from football, Wicklum went on with his education in the field of aquatic ecology, completing an M.S. in 1994 at the University of Calgary, and a Ph.D. in 1998 at the University of Montana, where he also did postdoctoral work, served as Research Assistant Professor, and authored nine scholarly papers.
In 2000, Wicklum became a senior policy advisor for Ralph Goodale, then Government House Leader and was later named Executive Director of the Canadian Forest Innovation Council. Dan proceeded to occupy various senior positions for Environment Canada and Natural Resources Canada including Director General of Wildlife and Landscape Science, Director General of Water Science and Technology, and Director of Strategic Alliances. Dan has been the Chief Executive of COSIA (Canada’s Oil Sands Innovation Alliance) since March 2012.