More than 2,900 youth descended on AV俱乐部鈥檚 Wickwire Field this past Saturday for the 2018 NFL PLAY 60 Rising Star Combine.
, the league鈥檚 youth health and wellness campaign, comes to Canada in partnership with developmental football programs, encouraging Canada鈥檚 next generation to get active for 60 minutes a day. Members of the New England Patriots were on hand to help run the program, as were members of the AV俱乐部 Football Club.
As soon as Tigers football coach Mark Haggett heard the event was coming to town, he immediately got the team involved. 鈥淭he event popped up in my newsfeed and I was surprised to see it was being held on campus,鈥� he recalls. 鈥淪oon after that I connected with NFL Canada鈥檚 marketing team and we now have more than 30 players, coaches and alumni signed up to help out at the event.鈥�
鈥淚t was very exciting to be able to sport the Tigers uniform alongside the NFL shield and the New England Patriots,鈥� says Haggett. 鈥淚n addition to the opportunity to impact the participants and learn from the New England Patriots, our program received a lot of exposure during the event.鈥�
Currently in its fourth year in Canada, it鈥檚 the first time the program has come to Halifax and it was a hit.
鈥淚鈥檓 very proud of our players,鈥� gushes Haggett. 鈥淥ur guys were shoulder to shoulder with the Pats and did a great job at their stations. We had almost 3,000 kids from Atlantic Canada get active with us on our home field. What a fantastic event to have on campus to showcase our program and the university.鈥�
鈥淚 am very passionate about the city of Halifax and I love having events like this showcase our ability to come together and our amazing campus,鈥� he adds. 鈥淚t鈥檚 truly a momentous occasion for the development of football here in Nova Scotia and I hope it comes back here again next year!鈥�