When they play professional football, they can look like lions with their full gear on.
But Solomon Elimimian and Courtney Taylor of the B.C. Lions went back to being cubs again with Prince George youth football players Monday at the Northern Sport Centre.
The CFL players without their pads and helmets, were guest coaches at the first youth flag football camp, organized by the Prince George Minor Football Association.
Fun was the name of the game.
"This is where I fell in love with the game, I started with flag football," said the Lions six-foot, 200-pound linebacker Elimimian during Monday's camp. "The fundamentals don't change - tackling, how to use your hands - it's enjoying the game and being kids again. It's pure fun being instilled in them."
Fifty-one male and female youth players participated in the camp, including players at the U10, U12, U14, U16 and and U18 levels. Five new players, without any experience, also attended the camp. A group of high school players from PGSS, Kelly Road, Duchess Park who play with the PG Axemen flag football league were also on the field.
Elimimian is entering his fifth season with the Lions and was named the CFL's most outstanding rookie in 2010 with 88 tackles and five sacks.
Taylor is a six-foot-one, 205-pound slotback going into his third full season with the Lions. Last season, he hauled in 61 catches for 774 yards which ranked him third on the club.
Taylor, who played college football at Auburn University in Auburn, Ala. said there is talent everywhere, even in a small city such as Prince George.
"They're still kids, there's talent everywhere you go, in Prince George or the Lower Mainland," he said. "I'm from a small town in Alabama with 700 people. I'll never forget when the Auburn defensive coach came to my small town and said this kid [referring to himself] can play football. If you work hard, you do your best and stay out of trouble, you can play."
Besides the technical skills learned on the field, another message the Lions pair passed along to the youth were the lessons from team work, hard work and leadership.
"Look at this camp, there are 50-plus personalities here and it's about learning to deal with different personalities," said Taylor. "Team chemistry translates into success."
And it's also about the failure to handle something that comes along.
"It's all about dealing with those obstacles, that's life," said Elimimian, who grew up in Nigeria and played college ball in Hawaii. "The biggest thing is how to deal with disappointment. I can list a lot of accomplishments, but I also have another list of disappointments. It's how you bounce back from those."
PGMFA's Flag Football League is becoming more and more popular every year. It has more numbers than its tackle program.
The flag league fields two U10 teams, one U12 squad, four U14 teams and two U16 squads that play five-on-five on the width of the turf. Games are short, about 45 minutes long.
There are even co-ed teams and an all-girls U14 squad. The league plays all in-house.
"Anybody can play," said U14 flag coach Tom Hinzelman, who also coaches PGSS' high school tackle team. "Having six to eight kids [per side] on the field, they get lots of reps and we get multiple games in the same day. It's very good."
The 2014 Flag Football League begins April 1 at the Northern Sport Centre until May 2 and then moves outdoors to PGSS's lower field.
Registration for the flag program will take place at the first six practices at the Sport Centre on April 1, 8, 15 or 22 from 7:30 - 9 p.m. or April 4 and 11 from 5:30 to 7 p.m.
Flag football is also beneficial to those who want to play in the tackle program.
"It's really good in developing receivers, defensive backs, and quarterbacks, and they become better tackle players in the fall," said Hinzelman. "They really learn the game and then they add contact... it makes sense."
Players who do register will require cleats, athletic shirt, shorts and a water bottle.
