Class 2012: Forrest to the City, Cochrane to Calgary (Video)

Although it isn’t exactly home, Kellen Forrest will not be travelling far for school next year. The product of Cochrane football has committed to play for the University of Calgary Dinos next season.

Kellen Forrest

Position:

Running Back/ Defensive Back/ Kicker/ Kick & Punt Returner

Height & Weight:

5’11”, 180 lbs

Teams:

Cochrane High School
Cochrane Lions (Atom-Bantam)
2011 Team Alberta U-18
2008 Calgary Selects

Commitment:

University of Calgary Dinos

Class:

2012

Kellen Forrest is not a direct product of Calgary football per se. As it is with Calgary and the surrounding towns it is sometimes difficult to draw the line. Many of the surrounding towns like Cochrane, Okotoks, and Airdrie are being more commonly considered suburbs of Calgary rather then completely separate, like they used to be. As Calgary continues to grow with urban sprawl, the surrounding areas will continue to be effected, and so will what is known as “Calgary football.”

That being said Kellen was raised in Cochrane, which is located to the North-West of Calgary. Cochrane has been known to produce some talented football players in the past and they have done it again. For Kellen, like most players in the area, it all started with the Cochrane Lions football program.

When he was eight years old he and his family decided to give contact football a try. Kellen tried out for the Cochrane Lions Atom team and there was no looking back. After a year of learning the game Kellen moved on to the Pee-Wee Lions team where he was a captain for both years. Next came the Bantam level, and it started to become more apparent that Forrest had some legitimate ability. In his second season of Bantam he was the Lions team captain and for good reason. He was their leader, and he led by example. Kellen was given the title of League Best Offensive Back and was named to the All-Star team of the Calgary Bantam Football League. This is what makes it difficult to distinguish if a player from a surrounding town is a product of Calgary football or not. These teams often compete with Calgary teams, and are even occasionally in Calgary leagues. Therefore it is easy to see why it may not be so black and white, but actually a bit of grey.

That season Kellen was chosen to represent Calgary with the Selects team that travels down to St. Louis every year. Following that summer he made the transition to high school football. In his first year with the Cochrane Cobras Kellen showed no signs of slowing down. He was named League Rookie of the Year, as well as Team Rookie of the Year and Special Teams Player of the Year. His next season went even better. In his grade eleven year Kellen was named a two-way starter. He was also named League MVP, Team MVP, and Team Special Teams Player of the Year. Kellen’s final season with Cochrane High went pretty well too, until the final game of the regular season. He had played basically every snap of football for his team prior to that game, but he was hit by a season ending injury and was forced to miss the playoffs. It didn’t all end on a bad note though. Kellen was still named League MVP, Team MVP, and Team Best Offensive Back.

Before his final season of high school football Kellen had his most memorable football experience. He was selected to play for the Team Alberta U-18 Team at the Canada Cup in Lethbridge. He captained the team to the National Championship game, where they came up short to the Quebec team. Even at such a high level of competition Kellen was recognized for his efforts by being named to the Canada Cup Offensive All-Star Team.

“It was such an honour to be picked to represent my province… and making it to the final just made it that much better. It was the biggest game that I have ever played in and it was on the national stage,” says Kellen. “Sure it was disappointing to come up short against Quebec but it was still a great experience. It was such a huge honour to be named a team captain, as well as being named to the Offensive All-Star Team. All the guys on the team were great, and I learned a lot from all of my coaches… it was just such an amazing experience!”

Getting to this point in his life and in his football career has not been an easy road. It has taken a lot of hard work and guidance to become the man and the athlete that Kellen Forrest is today and Kellen attributes this to three men in particular.

“Two of the biggest influences on my football career have been the head coaches of my high school team, Robbie Mcnab and Bruce Oneil. My dad has also been a coach for the Cobras for the passed 12 years so I basically grew up with the team. Over that time I developed a really close relationship with both of them. When it finally came time for me to play on the team they knew me pretty well and they also knew what to expect from me. They would not accept average from me, because they knew what I was capable of. Whether it was Mr. Mcnab on the offensive side of the ball, or Mr. Oneil on the defence, they both taught me a lot about the game and I will use their teachings for years to come.”

“As influential as both of those men have been, the most influential person in my life growing up has definitely been my dad Jim Forrest. The time that he has taken out of his life to coach me in both basketball and football is unbelievable. There have not been many teams that I have played on in which he was not a coach or, as in most cases, the head coach. He has taught me a lot of what I know about football and a lot of what I know about life. He is always there for me when I need to talk to him and I don’t think that that will change as I move on to the CIS. I owe a lot of where I am today to my father,” says Kellen.

Being a multi-sport athlete has definitely kept Kellen and his father busy over the years. When a person is athletically gifted it often leads to many opportunities through sports and can sometimes make it difficult to choose a favourite sport, or which sport to truly dedicate themselves to. For Kellen it was obvious that football was the right choice, not just because of his ability to play the game but because of his love for the sport.

“There are so many things that I love about this game. I have grown up playing it and it has now become such a huge part of my life. I love the physicality of the game and how competitive it is. I have always had a competitive nature and this game suits me perfectly. I also love that although it is a team sport, individuals can make a huge difference on any given play. That motivates me to always work my hardest on and off the field so that I can make those individual plays that will hopefully help my team win. In my opinion this is the greatest game in the world!”

Now Kellen plans to continue to work hard, on and off the field. He is hoping to accomplish a few of the goals that he has set for himself and for the team.

“Well I am currently enrolled in the business program at the U of C. Education has always come first in my family so my main goal going in is to come out with an education which will set me up for the rest of my life. However, sports have always been very important to me and I do have some goals going into my CIS career. My ultimate goal is to be part of a Dinos team that wins a Vanier Cup. I just want to help the team in what ever way that I can. The Vanier is my ultimate goal going in, if any individual accolades come with that then that will just be a bonus.”