JACK NEUMANN
Contributor
Senior defensive lineman Josh Hyer is enthusiastic to spread the football culture to the youth of Vernon and surrounding area.
He will have that chance when the University of Calgary Dinos play the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds in
his hometown on Wednesday, Aug. 24, in the first Kal Tire Kalamalka Bowl. Game time is 7 p.m. at Greater Vernon Athletic Park.
“I am really keen to be play a game in Vernon, but more excited for the young football players there,” said Hyer. “When I was a kid, I was thrilled to see the Okanagan Sun Juniors play in Kelowna, now these young kids will see a U Sports (Canadian university) football game live and be introduced to this (U Sports) level of football.”
Another reason Hyer is happy to be heading Vernon, is he will be going home, albeit briefly, having spent all summer working in Northern British Columbia on the Gateway Coast Gas Link pipeline project.
“I had only five days off the entire summer but it (the trip) will be short,” said Hyer, who deferred his draft year by a year and is hoping for a solid senior season. He is draft eligible in 2023.
It was a decision he thought through.
“I knew coming back for an eight-game season would not hurt me to develop more,” he said. A six-game season (2021) was not what I was looking for in my senior season.”
Hyer is a fourth-year communications student. After playing just a game as a pure freshman in 2017, he has become a fixture on the defensive line and will be counted on to supply leadership on a young team that has only safety Matt Lucyshyn and defensive back Jacob Biggs, along with Hyer, as remaining starters from the 2019 Vanier Cup Championship team.
Hyer followed former Vernon Secondary School teammate Carson Labrecque to Calgary and other than Labrecque, knew no one.
“Football has gone full circle for me,” he said. “I was very shy when I first came here (Calgary), but I got to practice against great players that are now in the Canadian Football League, got more confident, and now am in a position to become more vocal.”
When he joined the Dinos the furthest East he ever was to see relatives in Saskatchewan. He now has seen other parts of Canada playing in Manitoba, Quebec City where the Dinos captured the national championship, and in June participated in the CFL East-West Futures game in Hamilton.
Winning the Vanier Cup game remains a highlight for the 6-foot-3, 265-pounds Hyer, who was on the field for the final defensive series in the team’s 27-13 triumph over the University of Montreal Carabins.
“I will still get goose bumps when thinking of winning the national championship,” said Hyer. “We (the 2019 guys) will have that bond together for the rest of lives.”
Hyer will be joined in Vernon by fellow Panthers alumni and current U of C teammates Zack Smith, Brady Szeman, Liam Reid and Roan Reid, and will line up across the field from Panthers alum Bradley Hladik, who plays for UBC. Hladik’s older brother, Ben, now a linebacker with the CFL’s B.C. Lions, and Hyer are best of friends.
• The two university teams will be conducting skills camps for minor and school-aged players Tuesday, Aug. 23. Both teams will be at Polson Park Tuesday for Huddle in the Park, a free family event that will feature a meet-and-greet with players and coaches, and a free concert from Vernon band Cod Gone Wild. Silver Star Rotary will operate a concession.
Huddle in the Park starts at 6 p.m., and the concert begins at 7 p.m.
• Tickets for the Kal Tire Kalamalka Bowl are still available. Tickets are $12 if you buy online at kalbowl.com. Walk-up tickets will be $15.
Jack Neumann is a retired sports information director for the University of Calgary
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