While running through drills on the McMahon Stadium turf and studying a playbook created by the minds of Dave Dickenson and Co. may not sound like your typical summer camp, it’s just as fun for quarterback intern Silas Fagnan.

A native of Bonnyville, Alta., Fagnan began his collegiate football career on the east coast with St. Francis Xavier in 2021. He is a two-time Atlantic University Sport all-star and was the conference’s Most Outstanding Player in 2021. Fagnan’s played 13 total games for the X-Men and has thrown 239 completions for 3,232 yards and 23 touchdowns in that span.

Now, the young passer looks to take his game to the next level as the Stampeders’ representative for the CFL’s quarterback internship program before he heads back to Nova Scotia in September.

“Honestly, besides the fun, it’s pro football so it’s different than amateur which I’ve been playing, so there’s a new complexity and a new layer that I have to figure out,” Fagnan admitted. “But honestly, it’s been fun. Competing with guys who are at the top of the game, they’re some of the best athletes in the world and it’s been special.”

His father, Mickey, has been able to make the drive south from northern Alberta to watch his son take some reps at practice and like any doting Dad, he’s extremely proud.

“It’s really a treat,” he beamed. “I was over-exuberant on day one just being in the stands by myself.

“It’s great to see how things are run here from a technical aspect. The people have been so kind, no matter who I’ve met or which player, it’s always yes or no sir. There’s an atmosphere here that obviously has been bred from day one. It’s wonderful.

“This is like a lifelong dream for him, and we brought him here five years ago to an invitational quarterback camp and there he met some of the Dinos staff and I’ve followed and coached football most of my life and you can just see there’s an organizational masterpiece here.

“He’s in love with the game and just privileged to be here, very thankful.”

Fagnan is the third of six children, all of whom play football, including his younger sister who plays quarterback.

The family’s love of the game began when their father introduced the eldest to the sport as they couldn’t afford to put him in hockey.

“Football has been in our family since 2008 when my eldest started because we couldn’t afford to play hockey and it has been a great atmosphere to be around,” he explained. “It’s such a team-oriented sport and the cost to play was very minimal.”

Fagnan has had the opportunity to work alongside a quarterback room consisting of Jake Maier, Tommy Stevens, Logan Bonner and Chris Reynolds, spearheaded by quarterbacks coach Marc Mueller. For the young apprentice, the biggest learning curve has been the volume of information.

“You open the playbook and it’s a big playbook and these guys know it in and out,” he explained. “Just to watch how comfortable Jake and Tommy are flipping through the pages, they know it inside out and it’s really the professionalism of how to approach the system and what you’re doing with that much information and how to simply break it down.

“At the end of the day, we have to complete the ball. That’s our job.”

Fagnan’s father can attest to the abundance of information that’s been thrown his son’s way.

“The cognitive capacity for him and what they throw at you day by day is pretty intense,” he said. “The volume is overwhelming but he’s capable. Just to be here is something, it’s three steps ahead of where he is at St. FX and the play-calling is pretty intense but he’s loving every second of it.”

As Fagnan’s time at camp draws to a close, you can look forward to watching the young pivot put his wealth of knowledge to the test back at St. FX this fall.