Omoigui, 19, was only a few months removed from committing to the University of Regina Rams when he broke his collarbone during the Football Canada Cup in July 2007.
The injury leftt him unable to even practise with the Rams that season. He stayed away from sports all together in 2008 to focus on his engineering studies at the U of R -- not that it was an easy decision to do so.
"It was such a heartbreaker," said Omoigui, who rehabilitated on his own after the injury. "It wasn't just because of the Rams, but sports in general. In high school I played basketball and volleyball and football. After I broke my collarbone ... it came to a screeching halt."
But two weeks ago, Omoigui got a call from Regina Thunder offensive co-ordinator Stefan Endsin inquiring if the receiver had any interest in resuming his football career. He did.
"I've got a lot of buddies who play for the Thunder and Rams and you just hear them talking about practices and games -- you start to miss the action," said Omoigui.
Even before the Thunder took the field for their first practice of spring camp on Friday, Endsin was hoping that Omoigui could provide the Prairie Football Conference team the same thing he gave the Campbell Tartans in high school.
"I remember him from Senior Bowl when I coached in it and he was one of the guys that was really quick, really hard working and really smart," said Endsin. "I remember us while I was at Sheldon worrying about him because of his sheer speed."
It still remains to be seen how quickly Omoigui can get back up to speed.
"I guess we'll see in about 20 minutes here," he said with a chuckle before Friday's practice. "This was all kind of a spur-of-the-moment thing."
Endsin knows Omoigui will take some time to shake off the rust, but that wasn't going to deter the coach from extending an invite.
"A guy as athletic as he was in high school won't have a difficult time to pick it up," said Endsin. "There's going to be an adjustment -- that's expected -- but I think he'll do a good job. We're really excited to have him out and to use his speed a bit."
The Thunder spring camp continues today with workouts at 9:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. There is one workout scheduled for Sunday at 9 a.m. with a scrimmage to follow at 2:30 p.m.
