How Jordan Lessard ended up with Colorado State football from Quebec

Jordan Lessard’s eyes had been large open on the drive north from the airport to Fort Collins.

“I believed it was stunning,” Lessard mentioned. “Seeing the mountains all on the left aspect was superb.”

It was early January and Lessard instantly knew the place his future could be.

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“I used to be able to lock it down immediately. I beloved the vibe, I beloved the tradition,” Lessard mentioned. “Coach (Jim) Mora was working issues properly. I used to be excited to get it locked down.”

Regular recruiting go to, proper?

In a method, sure. However no.

Lessard wasn’t visiting the Colorado State soccer amenities and new coach as a highschool prospect, nor your conventional switch.

He was coming in from Quebec, Canada.

Lessard joins CSU as a switch from Laval College in Quebec.

That is his purpose. That is his dream.

“I knew what American soccer introduced and I knew that’s the place I needed to be and I knew I had the qualities to be right here, so I did the whole lot in my energy to be right here,” Lessard mentioned.

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Lessard truly spoke with Mora when the brand new CSU coach was at UConn and Lessard was popping out of highschool. However Lessard wanted extra expertise and extra movie as he grew his sport.

That’s as a result of, yeah, there are variations between the sport in Canada and what Lessard will face as a Ram the place he’ll try to make an influence as a cornerback.

“I feel the primary ones are the truth that there’s 12 gamers on the sphere in Canadian soccer, the sphere’s method greater and clearly simply the standard of soccer right here is unmatched. The gamers that I’m enjoying with right here I’ve by no means performed with in Canada,” Lessard mentioned.

He instantly observed the rise in degree, citing one other switch as one of many methods he’s rising his sport at CSU.

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“There’s some good soccer gamers there, however lining up in opposition to receivers like Jordan Mosley, who comes from Mississippi State and performed within the SEC, is only a game-changer for me,” Lessard mentioned.

Lessard was listed as 6-foot-2 on Laval’s roster (CSU doesn’t record heights and weights) and hopes to convey his strengths to CSU.

“I’m an extended nook. I’m tall, I’m massive. I convey a number of physicality,” Lessard mentioned. “I feel I can run with anybody on the sphere and I’m someone that likes to be up in folks’s faces and press extra.”

He loved Sonny Lubick’s Steakhouse on his recruiting go to and appreciates among the extra distinctive American issues he’s discovered, like Jimmy John’s. Lessard is roommates with one other switch, Elijah Mc-Cantos from Appalachian State, and says many within the defensive backs group have helped his adjustment to Fort Collins.

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“It’s been sick. It’s what I anticipated,” Lessard mentioned. “I knew it was going to be onerous, we get labored fairly onerous right here. It’s enjoyable. I find it irresistible.”

Sports activities reporter Kevin Lytle might be discovered on social media on X, Instagram and Threads @Kevin_Lytle and on Bluesky.

This text initially appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: How Jordan Lessard ended up with Colorado State soccer from Quebec