I arrived at Queen’s to begin my first year—not during the typical chaos of move-in day in residence, but two weeks earlier—hoping to earn a place as one of the quarterbacks for the Golden Gaels football team. That 12-day training camp is one of my fondest memories so far in my two years at Queen’s, and my participation in varsity athletics was one of the primary reasons I enjoyed my first year as much as I did.
Going into camp as a first year student, I was very nervous about playing with so many players who were so much older and more experienced than I was, but that was part of the excitement. When we arrived at camp, we were greeted, along with our parents, with a welcoming speech from Coach [Pat] Sheahan. We were told that we would all be given at least four days to prove ourselves, at which point the majority of the cuts would be made.
So with that deadline in mind, we moved into our single rooms on West Campus, said goodbye to our parents—I think I said something along the lines of “I’ll see you in about four days”—and we were soon out on the adjacent practice field doing preliminary testing. The next morning, the routine we would follow for the next 12 days began.
The schedule was hard, but in a lot of ways it was an athlete’s dream come true. We ate breakfast at 7:00 a.m., then had practice, lunch, another practice, meetings and film sessions, dinner, and more meetings in the evening. We were then expected to study the playbook before bed. When I was sent this schedule prior to training camp, it looked a bit daunting, but in the end it was ideal. It allowed us all to immerse ourselves in football without the distractions and pressures that awaited us when school began. This was the only time in the school year we were all free to enjoy football all day, and it was incredible.
The coaches and returning players did an excellent job of putting us at ease and relieving some of the tension. For example, during meals, the veteran players would have the rookies stand up on tables and tell jokes and perform skits, which went a long way toward keeping us all relaxed.
Training camp was a thrill and a great experience. Everything is conducted with a level of professionalism that I had only dreamed of in high school. Everything the players need is provided. I got an even bigger thrill when I was told I had made the team some four days in, but training camp was a distinct experience which I believe would have been more than worthwhile even if I had not been so lucky. I’m glad I managed to get past the nerves and participate in the camp. It was one of the most exciting and worthwhile experiences I’ve had in my life, and I’m proud of having been a Golden Gael.
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