Class 2012: John Meenagh, OL, St. Mary’s / Calgary Wildcats

Today CFC features class 2012 offensive lineman from Calgary, Alberta John Meenagh. John started playing football in 2003 with the Calgary Wildcats and has played every year since.

John Meenagh

Defensive Line / Offensive Line

Teams:
St. Mary’s Saints (high school)
Calgary Wildcats

Commitment: None

Consideration:
CIS – British Columbia, Queens, Toronto, Calgary
NCAA – open, Stanford

John started playing with the Calgary Wildcat organization in 2003 and has played two years of atom, peewee, and bantam and now is in his 3rd season with the midget team. As well he attends St. Mary’s where he earned a starting position as a grade 10 on the offensive line. In grade 11 he was a team captain and was a starter at both center and defensive line. He also volunteered and served as offensive line coach of the Calgary bantam Wildcats last season.

His football achievements include earning top offensive & defensive lineman honour’s for the Saints last year. He also helped lead the Saints to a victory in the Calgary division 2 city championship and was named an all star. He has also earned top lineman honours for the Calgary midget Wildcats and a coach’s award for pride, courage, and intensity. He was made captain for this seasons midget squad. As a coach last year, he was part of the team that was awarded ‘best coaching staff’ in the bantam league.

John’s most memorable football experience “would be the 2009 Calgary Midget Wildcats season where I started as a grade 9 (rookie) on one of the best teams I had ever seen. More specifically though, the memory that has stuck with me the most would be the city championship game that same season. We thought we were the best, and we thought we were unstoppable. We ended up losing the game in overtime. It is a feeling that sticks with you forever. To have everything that you had worked so hard for, be so close, and then stripped away. After the game was over I saw my teammates, guys that I had even idolized to an extent, break down in tears. These were the strongest guys I knew and they broke down in tears as they had their dreams crushed, and for many of these guys it would be the last football game they would ever play. It’s the losses, especially the ones like that, which stick with you and drive you to get better.”

The people most influential in his life “have definitely been my parents and family. They are the only people I have known since birth, and they have influenced every stage of my life. I grew up living by their values, in which schooling was the top priority, and modeling my behaviors based on what I observed my older siblings doing. I originally started playing football because it was a sport my dad loved (and I had dreams of being a big time quarterback and getting all the girls). Ever since I starting playing football at the atom level, my parents have driven me to every practice and every game which sometimes involved making a commitment to drive me 6 times a week, or arrive 3 hours early to games. They have also attended every single game I have ever been in. Even the games in which I did not play and they knew I would not play in, they still attended. My parents have even gone as far as to change or cancel vacation plans based solely on my football schedule. The have definitely been the people who have been most supportive in my life. The people who have been most influential in football have definitely been my coaches. Some of these guys have coached me for 7 years and have seen me grow and develop who I am today. They are like a second set of parents to me. They have shaped me from a raw and nonathletic kid to the player I am today. I attribute much of my successes to the ideologies of my coaches and the influence they have had on me. They have taught me that the objective is not to have fun, but to win. This is because fun is a byproduct of winning and cannot come without first having the other. They have also taught me to have a disdain for mediocrity. They have also taught me that there is always room for improvement, and they day that I am satisfied with my life or the level of my skill is the day I should retire. I also carry many of these ideas into my life outside of football, especially into my academics. My coaches have been a driving force in shaping who I am today.”

John is a 90% student and is enrolled in the international baccalaureate program at St. Mary’s. He is thinking of pursuing economics or engineering at university. John also wrestle’s and earned a silver medal at the Alberta high school championships. During the summer he trains 5 times a week with a trainer.