Owens will again be the Toronto Argonauts’ main threat on special teams, but head coach/GM Jim Barker said the speedy returner will also see plenty of action on offence in 2011.
“Oh, we’ll use him a lot more,” Barker said Friday from the club’s training camp. “We didn’t have him in training camp last year and it’s tough to implement guys in after camp is over.
“He was just trying to learn our stuff so we couldn’t move him around. Now we’re able to do that and he’s going to create problems for people. He’ll play all over the field and be used in a multitude of ways. Him with his hands on the ball is trouble.”
Owens created no shortage of trouble for Argos’ opponents returning kicks last season.
The 29-year-old Honolulu native was the CFL’s outstanding special teams player. He led the league in combined yards (3,288), punt return yards (1,060), punt return average (12.6), kickoff return yards (1,216), missed field goal return yards (425) and tied for the league lead with four kick-return touchdowns.
Owens, affectionately dubbed “The Flyin’ Hawaiian,” also became just the fifth CFL player ever to accumulate 1,000 punt and kickoff return yards in the same season.
However, Owens came to Toronto just prior to the 2010 season. So instead of having training camp to become acclimated to the Argos offence, he was forced to learn it on the run and thus limiting his touches at receiver.
But with a full camp under his belt this year, Owens is more than ready to assume a bigger role on offence if asked.
“I want to be as involved as they need me to be,” Owens said. “I just want to make sure I’m doing my job, be it if I’m asked to make a play on a return or play receiver.
“If I focus on that, just doing my job and not trying to do too much, I shouldn’t have any problems.”
Owens certainly took a long and sometimes bumpy road to Toronto.
He enjoyed a brilliant college career at Hawaii, finishing as the school’s career leader with 5,461 all-purpose yards. He also accumulated 3,031 receiving yards with 29 touchdowns in 44 contests and in ’04 captured the Mosi Tatupu Award as the NCAA’s top special-teams player.
He also helped the Warriors claim the ’04-’05 Hawaii Bowl games over Houston and Alabama, respectively.
But pro success was much more fleeting.
Owens spent three seasons with the Jacksonville Jaguars — appearing in just six games — after being selected in the sixth round of the ’05 NFL draft. He was also briefly with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers before spending the 2008 campaign with the Arena Football League’s Colorado Crush.
Owens came to the CFL on July 14, 2009 when he joined Montreal’s practice roster. But after seeing no action with the Alouettes, he was dealt to Toronto on June 24, 2010 for a 2011 fourth-round pick.
The five-foot-seven, 180-pound Owens immediately gave the Argos’ special teams a boost and despite his lack of familiarity with the offence still finished as Toronto’s third-leading receiver with 46 catches for 576 yards and three TDs.
Owens’ special-teams prowess garnered interest south of the border and he did work out for four NFL clubs before opting to re-sign with Toronto through the 2013 season.
“I’m just so thankful for the opportunity Toronto gave me,” Owens said. “There are so many guys out there who have talent but are home right now sitting on their couch yet they could very well be playing here or in the NFL.
“In this business you just need that opportunity and I’m very lucky Toronto gave me that opportunity and I was able to run with it.”
The Argos were the surprise of the CFL last season, posting a 9-9 record for their first playoff berth since 2007. After dispatching arch-rival Hamilton in the East Division semifinal, Toronto’s stellar campaign ended with a loss to the eventual Grey Cup-champion Montreal.
This season, though, neither the Argos nor Owens will have the element of surprise working for them. Owens, for one, isn’t the least bit concerned about having to deal with extra attention from opponents.
“That’s great, I love that because the more focus you have to put on one person, the more you forget about the guy next to him,” Owens said. “I’m ready, I’m excited to be a part of this team and be one of its focal points.
“I don’t feel any added pressure at all. If anything, I feel that much more comfortable being able to be part of training camp with my teammates. It was a lot of fun last year and I’m just looking forward to having another fun season.”