Jason "Jay" "J-Po" Pottinger (born June 29, 1983, in Whitby, Ontario

Whitby, Ontario

Whitby is a town in Durham Region. Whitby is located in Southern Ontario east of Toronto on the north shore of Lake Ontario, and is home to the headquarters of Durham Region...

) is a professional Canadian football

Canadian football

Canadian football is a form of gridiron football played exclusively in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete for territorial control of a field of play long and wide attempting to advance a pointed prolate spheroid ball into the opposing team's scoring area...

 linebacker

Linebacker

A linebacker is a position in American football that was invented by football coach Fielding H. Yost of the University of Michigan. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up approximately three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage, behind the defensive linemen...

 for the Toronto Argonauts

Toronto Argonauts

The Toronto Argonauts are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League. The Toronto, Ontario based team was founded in 1873 and is one of the oldest existing professional sports teams in North America, after the Chicago Cubs and the Atlanta...

 of the Canadian Football League

Canadian Football League

The Canadian Football League or CFL is a professional sports league located in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football, a form of gridiron football closely related to American football....

.

Early years

Pottinger went to McMaster University

McMaster University

McMaster University is a public research university whose main campus is located in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land in the residential neighbourhood of Westdale, adjacent to Hamilton's Royal Botanical Gardens...

 in Hamilton

Hamilton, Ontario

Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Conceived by George Hamilton when he purchased the Durand farm shortly after the War of 1812, Hamilton has become the centre of a densely populated and industrialized region at the west end of Lake Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe...

, Ontario

Ontario

Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....

 and played CIS football

CIS football

Twenty-six universities across Canada compete in football under the auspices of Canadian Interuniversity Sport . The teams are divided into four conferences, drawing from the four regional associations of the CIS: Canada West Universities Athletic Association, Ontario University Athletics, Quebec...

 for the McMaster Marauders

McMaster Marauders

The McMaster Marauders are the athletic teams that represent McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Athletics at McMaster is currently managed by the university's student affairs, under their athletics & recreation department. The university's varsity teams compete in the Ontario...

 from 2002 to 2005. He was named a member of the Ontario University Athletics

Ontario University Athletics

Ontario University Athletics is a regional membership association for Canadian universities which assists in co-ordinating competition between their university level athletic programs and providing contact information, schedules, results, and releases about those programs and events to the public...

 All-Star Team in each of his last three seasons and a member of the All-Canadian team twice. He was named the Outstanding Defensive Player of the OUA in for both the 2004 and 2005 seasons.

Jay played football with the Oshawa Hawkeyes from age 12 until he began playing for McMaster University. He continues to stay in touch with Durham Region youth football programs, and is a big supporter of youth football everywhere.

Professional career

Pottinger was drafted in the first round, second overall in the 2006 CFL Draft

2006 CFL Draft

The 2006 CFL Draft:-Round one:-Round two:-Round Three:-Round Four:-Round Five:-Round Six: -Further reading:*...

 by the BC Lions

BC Lions

The BC Lions are a professional Canadian football team competing in the West Division of Canadian Football League . Based in Vancouver, British Columbia, the Lions play their home games at BC Place Stadium in Downtown Vancouver, having previously played at Empire Stadium in East Vancouver from 1954...

. In his first season, the 2006 BC Lions season

2006 BC Lions season

The 2006 BC Lions finished in 1st place in the West Division with a 13–5 record and won the 94th Grey Cup over the Montreal Alouettes.- CFL Draft:-Preseason:-Season schedule:-Rushing:-Receiving:-Awards and records:...

, he recorded no sacks, 6 tackles and 19 special teams tackles in all 18 games for the Lions and was part of the Lions 94th Grey Cup

94th Grey Cup

The 94th Grey Cup game took place on November 19, 2006, at Canad Inns Stadium in Winnipeg, Manitoba before 44,786 fans. Ticket prices ranged from $141 and $275.The game decided the championship of the 2006 Canadian Football League season...

 victory. In his three seasons with the Lions, Pottinger recorded 115 combined tackles and one sack over 54 games.

On March 23, 2009, it was announced that Pottinger was traded to the Toronto Argonauts

Toronto Argonauts

The Toronto Argonauts are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League. The Toronto, Ontario based team was founded in 1873 and is one of the oldest existing professional sports teams in North America, after the Chicago Cubs and the Atlanta...

 in exchange for a first round pick in the upcoming 2009 CFL Draft

2009 CFL Draft

The 2009 CFL Draft took place on May 2, 2009. 48 players were chosen from among 774 eligible players from Canadian Universities across the country, as well as Canadian players playing in the NCAA...

.