Two young football stars survive
grueling Pirates camp
Story and Photo by Scott Taylor
Grant Keno and Blade Thickfoot had
no problem with Grant Park High
School’s spring football program. Both
said the grueling 68-practice session
that finally ended on June 2, did them
a world of good.
“The spring camp was great for me,”
said Thickfoot. “I got better every day.”
And that’s exactly what Pirates’
head coach Doug Kovacs wanted to
hear. When you’re the small school in
the Winnipeg High School Football
League’s toughest division, learning
and getting better are important parts
of a program’s growth.
Keno, whose family hails from
Garden Hill First Nation and Thickfoot,
whose family is from Fisher River First
Nation, are two players that Kovacs
will count on next fall.
Keno is a 6-foot-1, 280-pound nose
tackle (defense) and centre (offence)
who is expected to play both ways
again next season. Thickfoot is a
6-foot, 190-pound linebacker and
runningback who could also play
regularly on both sides of the ball,
although he’ll be the first to admit, he’s
a linebacker first.
Together, they are expected to be
cornerstones of the Pirates defense.
“Keno is going to start next season,”
said Kovacs bluntly. “He worked very
hard last year although he didn’t play
a lot because we had tremendous
offensive and defensive lines last year.
22 / sportslife
In fact, all five guys got scholarships.
Not all of them will play, but all five got
offers.
“Keno was a guy who had to play
against Tony (Rossi) and Kelsey
(Sumner-Travers) on a daily basis at
practice last season and never missed
a workout. Tony is on a scholarship
at Western and Kelsey is playing at
Manitoba. It was a great learning
experience for Keno.”
Both Keno, heading into Grade 12,
and Thickfoot, going into Grade 11, do
well in school and Kovacs is confident
that just like his five linemen from last
season, both will get a chance to play
university football.
“They both work so hard,” said
Kovacs. “In preparation to go to
Western, Tony (Rossi) started working
out hard on Feb. 25. Keno was in the
gym working with Tony all winter and
never missed a day. They’ve both been
going hard ever since.
“Blade meanwhile, came to us at
250 pounds and we thought he’d be a
nose tackle. But he’s worked so hard
in the gym to get in shape and he’s
worked so hard at his nutrition, that
he’s now down to 190 pounds and is in
as good a shape as any player on the
team. It’s not going to be easy for Blade
to start at linebacker because we have
three good ones back from last year,
but he’s lean, has great body position
and is very tough. As a Grade 11 player,
he’ll have a good chance to win a
starting job.”
Thickfoot was last year’s Grant Park
Junior Varsity MVP. During the Pirates
grueling spring camp, he was the most
outstanding defensive player with
four sacks, a pass deflection and “a
lot of tackles.”
Although Thickfoot is the younger
of the two players, he’s more
experienced.
“I’m 15, but I started playing five
years ago,” he said. “My elementary
principal was involved with the Valour
Patriots and he asked me to come out
and play. So I started at 10 as a Peewee
and I’ve played ever since.
“Last year I played in the summer
with the provincial U-16 team and I
went to Chicago with Recruit Ready.
My training with Recruit Ready has
made me a lot quicker.”
Keno picked up the game in Grade
8 and has become a better player
every season.
“I started to play football right here
at Grant Park in Grade 8 and have now
played for the Pirates for four years,”
he said. “I just like everything about
football. I really like the contact and
the competitiveness.”
Kovacs knows that both players have
a passion for the game.
“Keno is the first in the locker room
and the last to leave,” the coach said.
“He’s like my assistant coach. He’s
around all the time and he’s such a
great team guy. He’ll do anything for
the team.
“Blade is a really good athlete. Based
on how he did at spring camp, if we
started the regular season tomorrow,
he’d be a starter. Last year we had to
develop the linebacker position and
we did that. We have some really solid
linebackers back next season, but
Blade will definitely be in the mix of
players who could start.”
Kovacs called his 68-practice spring
camp, “one of the most difficult in
team history.” As tough as it was,
however, it appears as if Thickfoot and
Keno not only survived, but they’ll be
ready to Raise the Flag in September. l