Sowden hoping to build on Indigenous Bowl appearance
Torrey Sowden’s five days spent preparing and competing at the 2021 Indigenous Bowl in Minneapolis was the thrill of a lifetime.
But no moment compared to the first time he stepped on the field at U.S. Bank Stadium, the home of the NFL’s Minnesota Vikings.
“Ever since I started playing football as a little kid that has been my dream,” the Grade 12 student at Greater Fort Erie Secondary School said. “To get there and step on the field and to be able to soak it in and know that I was there was memorable for me.”
Sowden and 53 other Indigenous teens from across North America were kept busy in Minnesota. Practices were held twice a day and the rest of the time was spend in the team room discussing plays and planning for the game.
“It was either practise on the field or in the classroom,” the 17-year-old Fort Erie resident said.
The student/athletes were also given leadership training and listened to speakers and coaches discussing maintaining personal finances, applying for college scholarships and refining their skills as football players. The game was put on by the 7G Foundation, a group of entrepreneurs, coaches and tribal leaders who are building on the strength of its ancestors to mold the next seven generations of Indigenous leadership.
The on-field activities were amazing for Sowden.
“It was cool playing football with nothing but indigenous kids. It was great to be able to compare my talent to theirs.”
Getting to meet with other Indigenous teens on and off the field was also great.
“There are a lot of different types of clans and tribes and things like that. It was really cool to meet all the different kind of people and hear their stories and where they came from.”
Sowden was a member of the Golden Boyz team that recorded an 18-14 victory over the Purple War Chiefs.
“I played the whole game on defence and punts,” said the member of the Haudenosaunee Mohawk Nation, located at the Six Nations of the Grand River. “I do play tight end but the way the offensive scheme was they didn’t really need a tight end other than goal-line situations. That is when I went in to play offence.”
The 6-foot-4, 230 pounder has one main outcome he is hoping to achieve following his appearance in the game.
“I am hoping that I can get my shot. That is all I need because I know that I have it in me and I am willing to put in the work, not only on the field but academically as well. I need my chance.”
He is not sure if he is going to come back to GFESS for 12B. It depends on if he gets a scholarship offer in the States.
“There was one guy I met who really wants me to go far and wanted to keep in contact with me. He is going to send me a checklist and discuss with me what I need to go as far as I can over there,” Sowden said. “Coming back for 12B will depend on whether I need to get my GPA up and that will be the main reason I stay back.”
His goal has always been to play college football.
“Growing up, I never watched the CFL. It has always been the NFL and playing college football is all I ever wanted to do.”
He knows what he needs to do to make that a reality.
“In addition to improving my physical abilities, I have to really bunk down on academics. Personally I think that is what it is going to come down to whether I can get to that level or not. I know that I can do it physically.”
He draws his motivation from his lacrosse-playing family.
“My uncles, my dad and my grandpa all played lacrosse and that’s how I got into football. I played lacrosse as a kid but there were never enough kids my age to have a lacrosse team and that’s when I found football.”
One uncle, Jace Sowden, played NCAA Division 2 and 3 field lacrosse.
“I have always been taught that I can’t let what I have go to waste. I want to make all of them proud,” Torrey said.
He has been playing football since he was eight in Niagara Regional Minor Football and has played for Greater Fort Erie Secondary School every year, excluding the pandemic pause in 2020.
For the Gryphons, he played tight end and defensive end.
“I pretty much play anywhere where I can hit someone and that’s why I like defence.”
He first became aware of the Indigenous Bowl when his father, Arlie, forwarded him an email about it.
“They were talking about this big thing happening at the Minnesota Vikings stadium and I had to read it multiple times because I wasn’t sure it was a real thing.”
The application process involved submitting game film and every week Sowden would send new footage from GFESS games.
He was informed by email that he had been selected to play in the game. More than 350 athletes applied to compete in the event.
“I always wanted to play football but being indigenous and also from Canada it was a big gap from being looked at in general and playing in the States,” Sowden said. “It makes everything so difficult and once I saw that I could finally get a chance to get my name out there, it was everything I ever really wanted.”
