Gibran Hamdan Goes North of the Border

By Parvez Fatteh, Founder of http://sportingummah.com, sports@muslimobserver.com

The American football career of Gibran Hamdan has now taken a new direction: North. Hamdan, the product of a Pakistani mother and Palestinian father, signed with the Canadian Football League’s Toronto Argonauts this past March to play quarterback. He originally played quarterback at Indiana University before being drafted by the Washington Redskins in 2003. He was been a part of several National Football League organizations over the years, most recently the Buffalo Bills, before signing with the Argos.

Gibran Latif Hamdan was born in San Diego, California, but his family moved to Kuwait when he was three years old. The family subsequently moved back to the United States when he was 10, during the invasion of Kuwait, eventually settling in Maryland. Hamdan began his competitive athletic career in northern Virginia before being recruited by Indiana University, where he played not only football but baseball as well.

Gibran’s new coach already has some kind words for his new quarterback. Argonauts head coach Jim Barker told The Canadian Press, “From a skills standpoint, he’s got a strong arm, he has a real good presence in the pocket…But what I like best about him is he has a humbleness about the CFL, and he understands that it’s a different game, he has a respect for it. So he’s come in with a much different attitude about things than a lot of other guys coming from the NFL have. That has been very impressive to me.” Hamdan turned down opportunities to continue as a backup or practice squad player with other National Football Teams in order to get an opportunity to be a starter in the CFL this summer. So, inshallah, this may finally be Gibran’s time to shine.

12-21