The steady growth of the Big Rock Bengals has them poised for their best season yet.
Big Rock opens its fourth season in the Calgary and Area Midget Football Association this week boosted by an influx of youth and its biggest registration numbers in club history.
“My expectations were that it was going to take five years to build the program back,” said Bengals head coach Bruce Marlow. “We’ve consistently got better every year and I think that will show equally this year because the guys are doing really well and we have our best numbers in all four years.”
Big Rock boasts a 40-player strong roster entering the 2017 season due largely to an extension of its geographic reach.
After being populated primarily by Foothills Falcons and Holy Trinity Academy Knights in years gone by, the team has made further in roads south to High River and Claresholm.
“We’ve been very fortunate in that Bryan Brandford from Highwood is supporting the program and the coach from Claresholm as well as all the junior high schools are supporting the program,” Marlow said. “It’s coming along really well.”
The Bengals bring just three Grade 11 players to the field led by team captain Seth Nelson, a standout defensive back with the back-to-back provincial champion Falcons, allowing ample opportunity for the young core to get on the field.
“Our biggest strength this year is we’re young,” Marlow said. “Usually when you start a program like this all the senior kids are the ones who come out because they want to prove they can play football before they go off into the sunset and do other things.”
That can sometimes leave the younger players on the sidelines with smaller roles.
“The younger kids feel they get left behind because their the small kids on the block,” the coach added. “The older kids play more because they’re better football players. After a couple years you get more and more younger players out and it starts to snowball on you in a positive way.
“That’s what’s happened in our fourth year.”
Key returning players include Aden Ellis, centre Parker Nakamura, linebacker Spencer Kessel and lineman Jacob Kamajian. New to the Bengals is Comp Grade 10 slotback Payton Burbank.
Big Rock, fresh off its franchise best 3-3 record last season, opens its campaign on March 30 at 8:30 p.m. at McMahon Stadium in a battle with the defending Tier I champion Calgary Bulldogs.
“I know what the Bulldogs have, they have a great team,” Marlow said. “I think we’re going to be very competitive. We’ve got some things they’re not going to be ready for.”
The coach added he expects big things from his club in year four.
“My expectation this year is to win the Division II championship,” he said. “I look at the Division III as sort of getting a participation award and I’m not too much into that. You’ll see I never hand out awards for people showing up.
“Div II will be a step up from where we were.”
For more information on the Bengals go to bigrockbengals.com
