Yorkton Minor Football's annual Football Night in Saskatchewan banquet didn't disappoint this past Saturday at St. Mary's Cultural Center.
Highlighted by speeches from Saskatchewan Roughriders head coach Corey Chamblin and former CFL running back Craig Carr, the night entailed its share of laughter with a strong message on how important minor sports is for the youth.
All of the proceeds from the minor football banquet went towards Yorkton Minor Football. It will be used for day-to-day operations and other expenses.
"It was a great success," said Yorkton Minor Football president Roby Sharpe. "We sold out early and raised a lot of money for Yorkton minor football. It's great to see the community come together for our young athletes."
Carr opened up the speeches on how coaches influence young people's lives.
"The first time I tried football I was 12-years-old," he said. "At that age and growing through high school, I don't think I understood the impact coaches have on young people.Coaches have such a big impact on young kids. They can affect their lives indefinitely. Teamwork, integrity and commitment - coaches teach all of these things. Coaches helped me grow up and I know they help a lot more people. They keep kids off the streets and help them grow and learn to be honourable people."
Chamblin spoke on several different subjects, including his thoughts on his early years, minor football, and the upcoming Rider season.
"I didn't have the privilege to play minor football, but it wasn't because my parents couldn't afford it, it was because I was chicken crap and didn't want to get hit," said Chamblin. "My brother did, but I didn't want to. I ended up in track, but I had a lot of friends that ended up in minor football. And I went to all of the games to watch my friends. In track though, I saw how important coaches are. And how they mold the youth and can lead them and help them."
"When I first started playing football I was 13-years-old," he added. "They (the coaches) taught us how to take wins and losses and apply it to the classroom. It really taught us character and that's very powerful."
Chamblin added how a team with strong coaches can take down any obstacle in their way if they work together.
"Winning starts with an attitude and ends with an action. When you get the right amount of people doing the right thing at the time, I can guarantee you if you come together nothing is impossible."
On the Riders, Chamblin joked around on why he was hired and how speaking in Yorkton could impact Saskatchewan's upcoming season.
"The only reason (Riders general manager) Brendan Taman hired me was. let's see, in 2007 we (Winnipeg Blue Bombers) gave them the Grey Cup, then when I went to Calgary we let them get to the Grey Cup, so he figured now that I'm here we will get to the Grey Cup," he said.
"When (former Rider head coach) Kent (Austin) was here (Yorkton), he went to the Grey Cup, then when (former Rider head coach) Ken (Miller) was here he went to the Grey Cup, (former Rider head coach) Greg (Marshall) didn't make it here, so no Grey Cup. So if we go to the Grey Cup next year, it's all because of Yorkton."
The Riders head coach went on to say he believes he has the right group to win it all.
"Last year I talked about being competitive," he said. "I wanted to make sure we were a competitive team. This year, I'm not saying competitive; I'm saying Grey Cup. The goal is to be a Grey Cup team."
"Also to the kid who prayed to God to bring us a Grey Cup, I hope he heard you because he hasn't heard me yet," he added.
Lastly, Chamblin shared an interesting story on how he almost cut star running back Kory Sheets last year.
"Back in Florida camp last year, I wanted to go with three running backs. Kory Sheets was the odd man out of the three. He was slotted in at No. 4. But Brendan (Taman) wanted to keep four running backs. We talked about it a lot and ended up going with four. If we didn't go with four, Sheets wouldn't have made it."
