Star lineman Samuel Rybiak has just clinched a spot in the Alberta Senior Bowl, and will don the green and gold in the fall. 
Position:
Offensive Tackle
Teams:
Team North (Alberta Senior Bowl)
Harry Ainlay High School Titans
Edmonton Mustangs (Midget)
Edmonton Elite (Alberta Summer Games)
Height/Weight:
6’4, 265 lbs
Commitment:
University of Alberta Golden Bears
Class:
2013
Though Edmonton offensive lineman Samuel Rybiak has only been playing since Midget level, he quickly established himself as a strong player. He played Midget with the Edmonton Mustangs, and the summer before high school, he landed a spot on Edmonton Elite and travelled to Peace River to compete in the Alberta Summer Games.
“It was a lot of fun,” Samuel says. “wasn’t very sure of myself football-wise so the experience wasn’t what it could be, but still a great chance to make a lot of friends.”
As he continued to play for the Mustangs in the spring, Samuel entered high school and suited up for the Harry Ainley Titans. He earned a spot on the senior team in his first year, where he would stay for the length of his high school career. The team made two provincial finals, which they won in Samuel’s Grade 11 year. “The provincial final its the highest level a high school team can get to, but also the way a team comes together when there’s so much on the line is really special,” Samuel recalls.
Samuel will be rejoining several of his Edmonton Elite friends and teammates for the Alberta Senior Bowl, which takes place this May. “I like the chance to part of football whenever I can get it,” he says, “but the competition will just be one level higher than high school.”
Samuel has recently signed with the University of Alberta Golden Bears, and plans to study engineering when he starts in the fall. He is looking forward to seeing at least one familiar face. “The head coach of the Bears, Chris Morris, was the offensive coordinator at Harry Ainlay and with the Mustangs for the whole time I played for either team,” he explains. “He knows what he’s talking about and he knows how to say it.” Morris is one of Samuel’s biggest influences.
Off the field, Samuel enjoys basketball and was a competitive fencer before starting high school, participating in several competitions across western Canada. However, Samuel now finds that most of his time is devoted to either football or schoolwork.
With both the Senior Bowl and his career as a Golden Bear on the horizon, Samuel Rybiak has plenty of football to look forward to in the coming months.
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