Mac Chaisson’s Canada Cup experience ended with a bang.
But it wasn’t the kind of bang he was hoping for. He got knocked out of the July 9 semifinal against Saskatchewan after getting his bell rung.
The head shot was severe enough for organizers to hold him out for the rest of the national football tournament.
“Unfortunately, in the second game there, I got hit and they thought I had a concussion so I wasn’t allowed to play the rest,” the Cochrane High School Cobras senior linebacker said. “It was pretty disappointing.”
Chaisson and Bearspaw’s Des Catellier both made Team Alberta’s final roster at May selection camps and travelled with the team to Saskatoon for a 12-day national football camp/tournament featuring the top under-18-year-old (U18) football players from across Canada.
Chaisson’s tourney started with him carrying the Alberta flag onto the field in the July 6 opener vs. New Brunswick.
“It was really cool,” Chaisson related. “Just before the game, coach (Bryan) Brandford asked if I’d be OK with doing that. Obviously, I said for sure because it would be an honour.”
While his game play was cut short for concussion fears, he made the most of the experience.
“I’m feeling better,” the 5-foot-6, 185-pound linebacker said. “Obviously, the night of, I was feeling pretty bad. That was the worst part. After that, I was feeling like I could play. But, there is a 10-day protocol type thing. You have to be careful with head injuries.”
He spent the rest of the tournament taking part in non-contact drills and soaking up as much as he could.
“The coaching was great and I learned a lot at practice,” Chaisson relayed. “It made me a way better football player. Made me faster and quicker and stuff like that.”
It also gave him a headache he’ll never forget.
The result wasn’t the best, but it didn’t detract from the experience.
Cochrane area football players Des Catellier and Mac Chaisson are back from the Canada Cup under-18-year-old (U18) national tournament in Saskatoon. Team Alberta finished out of the medals after dropping a 22-19 decision to bronze-medallist Quebec on July 12.
“A lot of fun meeting new guys from all over Alberta,” Catellier said after returning from the 12-day comprehensive football skills camp/tournament. “The best football players. We didn’t get the result we wanted out of it, but we fought hard in the games it was good.”
Cochrane Midget Lions quarterback/placekicker Catellier, who also plays for St. Francis High School in Calgary, got some reps under centre in the July 6 opener against New Brunswick, won 76-0 by Alberta. The 6-foot-1, 170-pounder entering Grade 11 in the fall said things got tougher after the opening game.
Alberta tackled host Saskatchewan in the July 9 semifinal.
“We played a good game with them,” Catellier related of the Saskatchewan game. “They came out even harder than we thought they would. I guess they were trying to win for the home crowd. We got off to a bad start. We were losing 40-14 at one point. We made a big comeback but fell a little short.”
Saskatchewan won the semi 40-32. While earning mop-up duty at quarterback in the 76-0 whitewash of New Brunswick, Catellier didn’t take another snap in the semi or bronze-medal games. Alex Basilis of St. Mary’s in Calgary got all the reps under centre after the opener. It was Catellier’s first Canada Cup. He has a year of eligibility left.
“They (Team Alberta) said they are excited to see me next year. But there are no guarantees obviously,” he cautioned. “I have to go out there and be better and get the starting job next year.”
Catellier went 4-for-4 in field goals and kicked a convert in the final vs. Quebec. University recruiters were interested more in his kicking abilities.
“This year a lot of the recruiters talked to me about the kicking and stuff because they didn’t know much about me at quarterback. I’m hoping next year it’ll be more quarterback stuff.”
