Sam Cvijanovich was an award winning linebacker in 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....

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Cvijanovich played his college football at California Lutheran University

California Lutheran University

California Lutheran University is a university of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America located in Thousand Oaks, California.-Mission statement:The University's mission statement is as follows:...

 (1970 to 1972), where he was a second team all star in 1970 and was inducted into the Cal Lutheran Alumni Association Athletic Hall of Fame in 2003.

He played three years with 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 the CFL (1974 to 1976), playing 43 games and wearing number 33. In 1974 he won the CFL's Most Outstanding Rookie Award

CFL's Most Outstanding Rookie Award

The Most Outstanding Rookie Award is annually rewarded to the player deemed to be the best player in his first year in the Canadian Football League. This is the fifth-last award to be given during the CFL Awards banquet, which takes place the week before Grey Cup weekend in the same city where it...

on the strength of his 7 interceptions and 2 fumble recoveries.

He later played for the Ottawa Rough Riders, and 7 games for the BC Lions, in 1977.