The Calgary Stampeders have long been involved in minor football in the city. From management, to staff, to players, everyone is doing their part to grow the game from the grassroots level.

We talked with one of the local players, receiver Colton Hunchak, about his experiences with minor football.

What minor football program were you a part of growing up?

I started when I was four years old, playing flag football. There’s a little community league in the southwest. At the age of seven, I started playing atom football. From there, I started playing with the Mavericks and I worked my way up, playing at Notre Dame High School.

What programs are you involved in now?

Right now I’m not involved in any programs, but I know that Notre Dame High School is starting up their training camp soon, so I’m going to get in contact with my coach and go back and help out. In the spring I’m going to be here as well, so hopefully I can get involved in Mavericks football, for sure.

What skills did you build through minor football?

It’s the life lessons. A lot of stuff that I learned from football I’ve carried on to being a good family member, a good brother, a good father and a good boyfriend. It instills a lot of life principles that I don’t think anything else can.

What is your favourite memory from minor football?

Shoot! I kind of cherished all of the moments growing up. All of the friendships that I’ve made that and still keep in touch with, coaches as well. But I guess I would say my final final year in midget football. I think we lost to the Cowboys in the final game of the regular season, but we came back to beat them in the playoffs. It was good to go out with a bang.

Why would you recommend playing minor football?

The game instills a lot of different principles that you can’t learn outside of the game. I know there’s a lot of talk about concussions and things like that, but they’re making the game safer. It’s fun, you’re going to make new friends, and it’s very worthwile.

How did minor football prepare you for a future in the sport?

Going out east and seeing how football is run out there, Calgary football really has it down. They have a good system and the coaches – everybody that coached my played atleast at the university level, so the knowledge is there. It’s not just going out there and running around, they are always going to teach you technique and systems and different concepts. I feel that Calgary Minor Football is on a different level than the rest of the country, for sure.

What made you choose football over other sports?

I played a little bit of basketball and I ran track in high school as well. I chose football over those sports because I fell in love with the sport. My dad was a big fan of the stampeders growing up, so we always came to games when we were growing up. I feel in love with it and I kept getting better and better, so that’s what keeps me going.

What was it like to play with your brother Brett?

We were never against each other, but we always played together. It’s kind of funny, because it started when I was nine years old I played with him and he was 12. We thought it was a cool experience but not likely to happen again, but as we kept leveling up we found each other playing on the same team whether it was Calgary Football, at the national level, or collegiately.

Actually, with the East-West Bowl game, I was on the West team but there was too many quarterbacks, so he went and played on the East team. That’s the only time I’ve ever played against my brother. West took the win, so I’ve got the all-time matchup.

How did Dave Dickenson’s Passing Academy help you?

Dave’s knowledge of the game, you can’t compare it to anyone else. Having the opportunity to work with him throughout high school and pick his brain to learn how to read defences and understand more coverages and concepts was huge. Once you get to this level, some guys aren’t the fastest or the strongest, but if you understand the game you can really excel and he helped me with that.