3 Players from Cochrane High won bronze in the U18 Canada Cup

Three players from Cochrane High recently competed and won bronze for team Alberta at the U18 Canada Cup football tournament in Regina.

Bennett Fauth, Solomon Carlson, and Caleb Wetherall made the elite team from 500 who tried out earlier this spring, and competed in the tournament last week from July 5 to 13.

The team fought strong, winning two out of three of their games, and losing only once by a single point to a strong Quebec team.

All three of the Cochrane players are working toward promising careers in college level football, each reflecting on the valuable experiences they will take with them from the Canada Cup.

Bennett Fauth played Defensive Line at the Canada Cup tournament, and noted the sharp contrast in skill playing at a national level compared to his regular league. He mentioned that out of all the teams, Quebec and Saskatchewan had some of the strongest opposing lineman. 

“There were very good players," Fauth said. "Playing in my league is a lot easier to play, and not as competitive.”

He explained how his strategy for competing in the Cup involved learning the other teams' weaknesses, and using them to his team's advantage.

Fauth also reflected on his time at Cochrane High, and how his experiences with the football program there enabled him to push through the difficulty of competing at such a high level.

“None of us could have done it without the coaches at Cochrane High,” Fauth said.

Solomon Carlson said that the challenge of competing at a national level also helped him learn a lot as a player.

He explained that as a Defensive Back, there's so many little things to know. Such as reading the receiver, learning the formations the other team has, and many other things.

“So overall, I learned a lot. I think from when I went in, to when I came out, I'm a completely new player,” said Carlson.

Carlson explained how he played a different position in this tournament as opposed to regular season, going from field halfback to boundary halfback.

He said that his change in position at Canada Cup allowed him to see much more action than he had in regular season position, helping him grow a lot as a player. 

“Boundary gets thrown to more; so, I liked getting more targets,” Carlson said, “All the receivers were faster. Like, every receiver was faster, had sharper routes, and could catch the ball in any route pretty much. So, you could definitely tell the difference.” 

Caleb Weatherall explained how he was unfortunately injured during the first game of the tournament, which led him to learn his own unique lessons.

“I was going to try to come back to play in the gold game if we made it, but it was just too much to risk a re-injury,” Wetherall said.

He explained how his coaches were very supportive throughout his injury, and encouraged him to focus on his own best interest rather than forcing himself to play and risk further complications. 

“As much as it sucks, I still had a great time," Wetherall said. "And I tell that to everybody, It sucked not being able to be out there with friends. But I still got to be there and be supportive, and got to experience it first-hand.”

Despite all three players having their own unique challenges from the Canada Cup, they all agreed on how their experiences at Cochrane High helped elevate their game to play at this level.

“I felt like it made me a way better player, and just got me to where I am now,” stated Fauth, “So it's definitely a huge part of the coaching there, and just the culture as well.”

As the boys head forwards into collegiate level careers, they will no doubt continue to be a great representation for the town of Cochrane as well as Cochrane High.