St. Albert football player Tanner Doll returns to the world stage next week, this time with Canada at the U19 championship in Austin, Texas.
The first international competition for the product of the St. Albert High Skyhawks was the U20 International Bowl earlier this year with the World Team.
"I'm so pumped. It's going to be a great experience representing Canada," said Doll, a linebacker with the Calgary Dinos.
Canada will play three regulation games in eight days, starting Saturday against Sweden on the same field where the World Team defeated Team USA 35-12 on Feb. 1, marking the first time the American national team was defeated in an International Federation of American Football competition.
The Team USA roster featured high school seniors going into college, and the majority were committed to Division 1 schools.
"It was a pretty big deal to beat them. It was really cool and a lot of fun," Doll said. "I wouldn't say the competition was Canada West calibre, but it was extremely high calibre football."
Doll was originally invited to the International Bowl as a development player, but was quickly identified as a player who should be on the World Team.
"We were having trouble with our long snapper they had and they asked me to step into that role. I ended up playing on all the special teams and as the starting long snapper," he said. "The game was in Austin and it was just a huge eye-opener to how huge football is down there and their culture and how everyone perceives you and how much they love the game and all the hoopla that goes along with it. It was a real neat experience."
Junior tryouts
Doll was eventually invited to try out for the junior national team at a western regional camp in Moose Jaw.
"When I did get to the camp it helped that I was already known and I had that experience playing on that kind of stage before," said the Team Alberta player at the 2010 Football Canada Cup. "I felt I did well stepping into my role for the World Team and they were impressed by that."
The result against Sweden will determine the rest of Canada's schedule at worlds. Panama, Austria, Japan, France, American Samoa and the United States are also entered. The gold and bronze finals are July 7. Canada was the silver medallist at the inaugural 2009 worlds in Canton, Ohio.
"I'm definitely looking forward to it," Doll said. "What I've been told in talking with the coaches is I will be long snapping and playing linebacker."
In preparation for worlds, Doll trimmed down to his high school playing weight of 220 pounds.
"I wanted to get my cardio up so I'm about five pounds lighter than I truly want to be."
Pushing to start
The six-foot Doll will then bulk up for his second season with the Canada West champion Dinos in hopes of earning playing time at inside linebacker after dressing in four games last year.
"I feel like I'm going to have a big year this year so I'm excited," Doll said. "I went in expecting to redshirt my first year and I ended up playing in I think three out of the four games and it was a great experience."
Sam Hurl and George Verdone, a pair of 2012 CFL draft picks, were ahead of Doll on the depth chart.
"It was great to learn from those guys. They have two different styles but they both have their strengths."
The transition from high school, where he was the undisputed ringleader of the Skyhawks, to starting from the bottom of the depth chart with the Dinos was a work in progress.
"It was tough. I was used to being the guy and the only time I ever came off the field was getting a squirt of water and then I had to get straight back on," said the open studies student. "It was a different experience but I knew going in I was going to have to battle and work hard every day."
The biggest jump was going from the Skyhawks' playbook to the Dinos' complex defensive system.
"It was a brand new playbook and it was overwhelming. You also get overwhelmed a tiny bit at the beginning by the speed and strength of the other guys, like the first team guys," Doll said. "That transition was a bit tough but after training camp I picked up on the speed and the playbook and it became a lot easier."
