The Rocky View Sports Association (RVSA) 2011 high school football season came to an end, Nov. 28, with the annual football banquet. The ceremony was hosted at George McDougall High School and honoured the league’s standout teams and players.
“It went really well,” said McDougall head coach Brent Legault. “The coaches speeches were poignant and eloquent, and Jeff Moodie did a phenomenal job.”
Moodie, a graduate of Foothills Composite High School, was the banquet’s guest speaker. He won provincial title in 1994 with the Falcons and a national championship with the U19 Team Alberta. He continued on to the collegiate level and helped the St. Mary’s Huskies to back-to-back Vanier Cups in 2001 and 2002.
Moodie was on his honeymoon in Mexico in February 2009 when a boogie boarding accident left him a quadriplegic. He has since regained some movement in his arms and shoulders.
He spoke to the players, coaches and parents in attendance at the banquet about his passion for football and how his accident put it all into perspective.
Brian Utley, head coach of the Chestermere Cowboys, coached against Moodie starting in 1992, and introduced him at the banquet.
“He was a tremendous competitor,” said Utley. “He was the prototypical linebacker. He was tough and athletic, and he had a great will. He hasn’t done many of these speaking engagements, but he was very articulate. If you’re looking for a life lesson on will, his was a very good (example.)”
Brad Taubert and Fletcher Freund were the top award winners for Chestermere, with Taubert co-winner of Quarterback of the Year alongside Levi Jackson of the Springbank Phoenix. Freund was the recipient of the team’s Heart Award.
“Fletcher’s one of those kids that, for three or four years, has shown up everyday,” said Utley. “He led by example, had great enthusiasm and was committed to what we were trying to do. It’s a reflection of his season and his career.
“Brad had a big influence on how our team did and that was recognition of his play as quarterback as far as throwing and running the ball. He’s just an all-around great player, and your quarterback is usually your best athlete. He only threw one interception all year, and that’s remarkable.”
“It’s quite a great feeling and it’s really cool to win the award,” said Taubert. “Coach (Utley) has been a big influence on the way I play, as well as my parents for supporting me and coming out to the game.
“Compared to last year, this season’s been a big success,” he said of the Cowboy’s third place finish. “We haven’t won too many games in the past and this year we turned it around. We have a lot more returning guys (next year), so it should help.”
Trevor Costello, Jesse Seddon, Tristan McMurdo and Hunter Karl were named the team’s All-Star players.
The Cochrane Cobras were presented their provincial silver medals at the banquet. The Stettler Wildcats defeated the Cobras 55-15 in the Tier III final Nov. 26.
“It was a perfect storm for us,” said Cobras’ assistant coach Jim Forrest. “Injuries finally caught up with us and the wind was howling. That negated any chance to throw the ball, which is a big part of our offence. They were good and they beat us up.”
The team was once again without top running back Kellen Forrest, who missed the last six games of the season with a knee injury. Despite watching his team’s run to provincials from the sidelines for more than half the season, Forrest was named the league’s Most Valuable Player for the second year in a row.
“It’s a tremendous honour,” he said. “I won it last year, and I was hoping to repeat my great season from last year, but I have to give credit to my teammates because they helped me out a lot.
“We were firing on all cylinders, but we had some injury problems and we didn’t start the way we wanted,” Kellen said about the final against the Wildcats.
“I got in for one play, but (being injured) was one of the hardest experiences of my life because I felt I could’ve helped my teammates. It was a hard thing to do, but we still had a tremendous season.”
Cooper Hamaliuk, Coleton Miller, Eric Patterson and Ashton Arif also took home top awards for the Cobras. Hamaliuk was named the Offensive Player of the Year, Miller shared the Offensive Lineman of the Year with Connor Christianson of the Springbank Phoenix and Patterson took home Receiver of the Year honours. Ashton Arif won the team’s Heart Award.
“All of those guys are more than deserving of their awards,” said Forrest. “Most of them have been three-year players for us and they all had successful season. It was a good way for them to finish their careers and it gave them a little bit to smile about after (the final), which was devastating for them.”
Here are the winners from the RVSA Football Awards Banquet, Nov. 28:
• Most Valuable Player – Kellen Forrest (Cochrane)
• Offensive Player of the Year – Cooper Hamaliuk (Cochrane)
• Defensive Player of the Year – Corey Robinson (George McDougall)
• Defensive Lineman of the Year – Coleton Miller (Cochrane), Connor Christianson (Springbank)
• Offensive Lineman of the Year – Dale Butters (Cochrane)
• Defensive Back of the Year– Santiago Fuentes (Springbank)
• Running Back of the Year – Josh Duazo (George McDougall)
• Quarterback of the Year – Brad Taubert (Chestermere), Levi Jackson (Springbank)
• Linebacker of the Year – (Dionn Smith)
• Receiver of the Year – Eric Patterson (Cochrane)
• Special Teams Player of the Year – Ben Basset (Springbank)
• Rookie of the Year – Luke Edey (Bow Valley)
• Coaching Staff of the Year – (Springbank)
• Mark Johnson (Bert Church)
• Ozy Lang (Bow Valley)
• Fletcher Freund (Chestermere)
• Ashton Arif (Cochrane)
• Cole Harnack (George McDougall)
• Erik Nolan (Springbank)
