KELLY BATES

'Kelly Bates' (born July 27th, 1975 in Humboldt, Saskatchewan) is an offensive lineman for the B.C. Lions of the CFL. He currently wears number 59, is 6'3 tall and weighs 296 lbs. Bates went to the University of Saskatchewan and played for the Saskatchewan Huskies football team. He was a core member of their offensive line and helped the Huskies win the 1998 Vanier Cup. The Lions selected Bates in the 2001 CFL Draft (4th round, 32nd overall). In 2004, he missed 7 games to a knee injury and started 11 games. In 2005, Bates started all 18 games including the West Division Championship. In 2006, he missed a few games and was replaced by Dean Valli in that span. Bates was blamed by team mates for breaking the Grey Cup after B.C. won it in 2006. He has been a starter on the team since 2003.