Former coach not surprised with Claypool’s athletic first NFL grab

It was a brilliant first catch, but Jay Fujimura had no doubt Chase Claypool would come down with the football.

The six-foot-four, 238-pound Claypool made a sensational 28-yard reception in the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 26-16 season-opening win over the New York Giants on Monday night, marking the Canadian rookie’s first career NFL catch. The 22-year-old Abbotsford, B.C., native went high between two defenders to nab a third-down pass from star quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, then got both feet down to extend a drive that produced a field goal.

Claypool’s athleticism drew rave reviews. It’s something Fujimura saw often from Claypool as the head coach at Abbotsford Senior Secondary School.

“He’s doing what I expected of him and what he’s always done throughout,” Fujimura said during a telephone interview. “He just rises to the occasion and makes big plays.

“One of the thrilling things was to say a kid from Abbotsford just caught a pass from Ben Roethlisberger. That’s pretty cool.”

Claypool, picked in the second round of this year’s NFL draft by the Steelers, was a big-play performer in college at Notre Dame. He was the school’s leading receiver in 2019 with 66 catches for 1,037 yards and 13 TDs and finished with 150 career receptions for 2,159 yards and 19 touchdowns.

But he really served notice at the NFL combine with a 40-yard dash time of 4.42 seconds. Fujimura knew when Claypool was in Grade 12 that he was special, but admits he didn’t foresee his player starring on the sport’s biggest stage.

“He had many (Division 1) offers and I knew he was at that level but even if you go D-1, the percentages of making it (into NFL) are small,” Fujimura said. “At that point did I imagine watching him on Monday Night Football playing for the Steelers?

“I’ll be honest and say, no, I wouldn’t have pictured that. But that being said, I knew anything was possible with this kid because every time he faces a challenge he rises to it.”

That included Claypool having to prove himself at Notre Dame.

“When he went to Notre Dame, people thought he was from Canada and had a lot of work to do and they weren’t sure if he was going to pan out,” Fujimura said. “He just worked hard and became the MVP at Notre Dame.

“When someone asks me about what he’s going to be like in the NFL, I say, ‘You know what? He just does what he does.’ He goes there, sees what he’s up against, rises up to it and then pushes himself past it. Once I knew he was going (to the NFL), I knew he was going to be successful.”

Claypool has had to deal with personal tragedy.

In 2011, his older sister, Ashley, committed suicide at age 17. Her memory remains as a tattoo on Claypool’s right arm and includes the words: A thousand tears won’t bring you back. I know, because I cried. Neither will a thousand words. I know, because I’ve tried. Until we meet again.

“I don’t want to say that gave him more purpose but it definitely made him more focused,” Fujimura said. “It kind of brought to light that he wants to do as much as he can with his life with the time he has and not take things for granted.

“Chase got his degree and had that set up where if football wasn’t going to be his calling he was going to set himself up to live his best life possible given his opportunities . . . having fun doing what he’s doing but working as hard as he possibly could.”

Fujimura said Claypool is the ultimate competitor on the field, but a totally different person away from the game.

“He’s just a nice, fun-loving guy who has a really big heart and is very loyal,” Fujimura said. “He knows the people who’ve helped him along the way, he doesn’t forget and always returns to Abbotsford and gives back to the community, the school, the people who’ve helped him out.

“The biggest thing was his willingness to improve and desire to grow. When he was a young kid, he had distractions but as he got older he matured and that continued all through his time at Notre Dame. It’s not like he came out of the box the way he is but I think it’s a testament to him setting goals for himself, personally and athletically, and doing what he needs to do in order to achieve them.”

Fujimura said Claypool nearly revealed his fun-loving side Monday night.

“As a person, I think his best traits would probably be his laugh and smile,” he said. “He likes to have fun when he’s not being serious, when he’s not competing.

“Even after he got that first catch you could see him trying not to crack a huge smile. I knew he wanted to. I think the biggest thing he has going for him is he endears himself to people.”

Fujimura said Claypool also has a very strong work ethic.

“He’ll do whatever extra things he needs to in order to make sure he’s at the level he wants to be at,” Fujimura said. “He wants to play but he’s not the kind to say, ‘I want to see my name up in the rafters.’

“He wants to be part of a team, he wants to win championships and whatever that looks like for him that’s what he’ll do. Now, that (being a top NFL receiver) could happen because of him working hard but that wouldn’t be his goal, winning a championship would be.”

There’s plenty of interest in Claypool north of the border, but Fujimura said Claypool can easily shoulder the weight of expectation.

“He has the ability . . . to be empathetic about how people see him,” Fujimura said. “But when it comes time to perform, he’s always been very, very good at compartmentalizing and becoming really focused on what he needs to do.”

Fujimura believes Claypool is in a good place professionally.

The Steelers have a very young receiving corps that’s anchored by JuJu Smith-Schuster, the unit’s elder statesman in his fourth NFL season.

“As an organization, Pittsburgh has been very good at grooming young receivers,” he said. “I like how they’re not putting a ton of pressure on Chase right now and working him in.

“How they work kind of encapsulates how Chase is also.”

The Steelers’ home opener is Sunday against the Denver Broncos.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2020.

Dan Ralph, The Canadian Press