Courtesy Edmonton Journal:

Mathieu Bertrand has a few sage words of advice for Jason Marshall as rookie camp kicks off today with the Edmonton Eskimos.

Embrace your anonymity as a fullback, Bertrand says. Study your new position with the rigour you once reserved for university calculus.

And enjoy the chance to hit people for a living after taking so many bone-crunching hits over the years as a quarterback in the college ranks.

“As long as he likes the physical contact, he should be OK,” Bertrand said Tuesday from his off-season home in Quebec City. “Just work hard every single day and little by little, the position will come to him over time.

“I did it five years ago, so I see no reason why he can’t do the same thing.”

The Eskimos see many similarities between Bertrand, 30, and Marshall, 23. Bertrand was a star quarterback at Laval University. Marshall played the same role at Simon Fraser University.

Bertrand is six-foot-three, 216 pounds. Marshall is even bigger at six-foot-three, 235 pounds.

Both played quarterback more like a linebacker. Both thrived on the joy of dragging would-be tacklers down the field.

“Jason could have played any position on that team at Simon Fraser,” said

Edmonton head coach Danny Maciocia. “They just decided to play him at quarterback. He’s taken a few blows and delivered a few blows along the way.

“He’s an interesting guy, let’s put it that way. We think he might be a young Mathieu Bertrand, but who knows? We’re going to give him a chance.”

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