Mullinder embracing life after football
Luc Mullinder is retiring under his own terms. Mullinder, a veteran defensive lineman of nine CFL seasons with the Saskatchewan Roughriders, Montreal Alouettes and Hamilton Tiger-Cats, revealed his retirement plans on Twitter on Monday. On Tuesday, Mullinder said that he is unofficially retiring from the game that meant so much to him.
“When you play football and sports in general for as long as I have, you never really envision the end scenario,’’ said the 32-year-old Mullinder, who added that he was granted his release from the Alouettes on Tuesday so he can officially retire as a Roughrider. “You really only envision what you can get out of it financially or emotionally. Walking away while I still can and under my own terms is the best-case scenario for any football player. This game is cold-blooded and it leaves a lot of people that I know who are just floating in the wind with those desires and aspirations to be a pro football player long after they are shown the door. I look back on it now and I really did everything I wanted to.’’
Mullinder spent six-plus seasons with the Riders after being selected in the fourth round (31st overall) of the 2004 CFL draft out of Michigan State University. He’s excited about his future away from football where he’s a holistic adviser with Sun Life Financial and an ambassador with the Saskatchewan Red Cross’s antibullying campaign. Mullinder considered retiring prior to the 2012 season because of those commitments, but elected to return to the Alouettes for one more year.
“Last year was something that I needed to get out of my system,’’ said Mullinder, who married his wife Mel, on Dec. 31 in Regina. “You don’t want to walk away with any regrets or that I left too early. I want to build my own business and doing that when you’re away for six months out of the year is hard, especially with the service that I want to provide to my clients.’’
Mullinder also feels it’s important to retire as a Roughrider.
“I spent the majority of my career with the Riders and that’s why it was important to get my release from Montreal,’’ said Mullinder, who was born in Auckland, New Zealand, and grew up in Mississauga, Ont., before attending Michigan State for four years. “(Saskatchewan) is where I made most of my friends and I had the best memories.’’
Among those memories was sharing in the Riders’ 23-19 victory over the Blue Bombers in the 2007 Grey Cup game.
“Winning the Grey Cup is the highlight of anyone’s career,’’ said Mullinder, who also appeared in the 2009 and 2010 Grey Cup games with the Riders. “(2007) was a special year because there haven’t been a lot of (Grey Cups) here and how it was received was amazing. Being part of that team and having your name on the
I wasn’t one of the best, but I always had it my mind that I was the hardest working
LUC MULLINDER
Grey Cup is something that you can show your kids.’’
Mullinder’s time with the Riders ended on Aug. 8, 2011, after six games when he was traded to the Alouettes for import receiver Dallas Baker. Mullinder played one game with Montreal in 2011 before being released. The day after being cut, he signed with the Tiger-Cats and recorded six defensive tackles while dressing for 11 games. After the 2011 season, Mullinder was released by the TigerCats and he re-signed with the Alouettes. In 2012, he dressed for 17 games and registered 17 defensive tackles. In nine seasons, Mullinder dressed for 128 games, recorded 112 defensive tackles and 16 sacks.
“I wasn’t one of the best, but I always had it my mind that I was the hardest working,’’ Mullinder said.
“I knew if I had the work ethic that I would be able to extend my career and be successful. I was never an all-star or had the accolades that elite defensive lineman had, but you could never tell me that I didn’t work as hard or harder than the rest of them.’’
Mullinder intends to carry that work ethic into the newest phase of his life.
“Continuing to give back to Saskatchewan’s communities in terms of the anti-bullying is huge,’’ said Mullinder.