Muamba brothers starting to take CFL by storm, but they almost didn’t choose football

The CFL's had an intriguing brother combination for two seasons now, as Winnipeg's selection of St. Francis Xavier linebacker Henoc Mumba first overall in the 2011 draft put him and brother Cauchy, a defensive back with the B.C. Lions who was taken 34th overall in the previous year, in the same league. The two brothers even went head-to-head in last year's Grey Cup game. However, it's this year where both have really started to make their mark as every-down players, which is line with the usual trend of CFL pick development. Cauchy's taken over as the Lions' starting safety, and his two-interception game against Saskatchewan shows how far he's come (and puts him into a logjam of a tie for third in interceptions on the year, as only two players have more than two), while Henoc has been making his presence felt both as the Bombers' starting middle linebacker (he had a league-high three forced fumbles heading into this week's action) and as a leader on their special teams (he has a team-high seven special teams tackles this season). The weird thing, though, as Mike Beamish writes, is that the brothers almost didn't play football:

So, the league's top brother act at the moment is only here thanks to Gary Waterman's basketball skills. It's great that they chose football and are playing so well, but that story really demonstrates how much of a role chance can play in many athletes' careers. We don't know how the Muambas would have done in basketball, but they're certainly dominating the football world, and both shone in this week's B.C.-Winnipeg game. Henoc added another forced fumble and two tackles, while Cauchy played well in coverage and contributed two tackles.

The Muambas might just be on the road to rare greatness as a tandem, too; there aren't a ton of brothers who have excelled at this level, and some of the most notable recent ones have played in different leagues (like Saskatchewan quarterback Darian Durant, whose brother Justin's a linebacker for the NFL's Detroit Lions). Yes, there have been other CFL brother acts, including Brett and Brock Ralph, but the most dominant recent pairing would have to be Canadian Football Hall of Fame members Doug and Darren Flutie (also the last brothers to face each other in a Grey Cup, back in 1996). The Muambas haven't done nearly enough to get to that level yet, but given how well they've played so far, don't rule out them having long CFL careers and perhaps challenging for a Hall of Fame spot one day. There's also another younger brother, Kelvin, who's playing receiver in CIS with Wilfrid Laurier and might just make it to the pros down the line. It looks like we have Waterman's hoops prowess to thank for the Congo-born Muambas turning into gridiron stars. Only in the CFL...