The Calgary Stampeders are no longer the CFL’s premier franchise.
While still a reliable winner, their decade of dominance has faded, their stadium has degraded, and attendance has dwindled in recent years. A new powerhouse, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, has emerged.
Though the stagnation in Calgary should be a concern for fans, the effect of the franchise’s 21st-century golden era is still being felt in the CFL. Namely, that comes in the form of young football players from southern Alberta inspired by the Stampeders’ heyday, including 2023 draft prospect Alexander Fedchun.
“I started playing football after I went to a Stampeders game. I fell in love with the sport, the atmosphere, the stadium; the crowd roared when we got a touchdown or a sack,” the St. Francis Xavier University defensive end recalled in a recent interview with 3DownNation.
“As a hometown kid growing up there, I was always at the games. The Labour Day Classic was definitely a great atmosphere to be in.”
Now 23 years old, Fedchun could soon be playing in that same environment. In the decade and a half since his first game at McMahon, he’s developed into a dangerous collegiate pass rusher with a relentless motor. With that skill set, it is unsurprising where he drew his inspiration.
“My favourite player was definitely Charleston Hughes at defensive end, to watch him do his thing was crazy,” Fedchun grinned. “I definitely try to take that speed from him, to be able to get around that edge quick and set the edge faster. Just be quick overall.”
Hughes played 10 dominant seasons in Calgary from 2008 to 2017 before making stops in Saskatchewan and Toronto. Though he is currently without a team, the 39-year-old has not yet officially retired and could still face off against the youngster he inspired next season. With 136 career sacks on the future Hall of Famer’s resume, Fedchun has an uphill climb to catch his idol.
The six-time CFL all-star wasn’t the only Stampeders great to make an impact on the local product’s pro football journey. He fondly recalls attending a youth camp hosted by Hall of Fame receiver Nik Lewis when he was eight years old, with the current Calgary assistant coach making him feel especially welcome as a newcomer to the game.
Other early football experiences weren’t nearly as positive. Fedchun sheepishly admits that he initially quit following his first organized practice, uncomfortable with some of the hard coaching he received.
“I had never really been yelled at like that before so I wasn’t used to it. Once I went and talked to the coach afterwards with my dad, I realized it was from a good place,” he said.
“It wasn’t that he was mad at me, it was, ‘I know you’ve got more in you, you’ve gotta keep pushing.’ I kind of take that with me now. Anytime I get yelled at, it’s a learning experience.”
Sticking with the sport proved to be a wise decision as Fedchun has thrived at every level since, including suiting up for Team Canada. Despite his strong hometown CFL allegiance, he travelled as far afield for college as possible, contacting head coach Gary Waterman for a spot on the St. FX team after falling in love with the school while visiting his older brother in Antigonish, Nova Scotia.
The decision came down to academics as Fedchun, who struggled with ADHD and dyslexia in high school, believed the school’s small class sizes would help him succeed. True to his word, he received his X-Ring — the school’s unique memento for graduating students — in December and will soon have his bachelor’s degree in human kinetics.
“No one else does that stuff, it’s kind of unique in its own way. It ties into the family culture out there,” he said of the special ceremony with a hint of pride. “If you’re walking down the street and you see someone with an X-ring, you’re gonna say hi.”
Along the way, he accomplished a great deal on the field as well. A three-time AUS all-star, he amassed 135 tackles, 31.5 tackles for loss, 17 sacks and two interceptions in 30 career games. After a nine-sack campaign in 2022, he was named the conference’s nominee for the J. P. Metras Trophy as the country’s best down lineman, losing out to UBC offensive tackle Theo Benedet.
Those impressive accomplishments will carry an unfortunate asterisk in some circles, however, due to the AUS’ reputation as the weakest of all the Canadian conferences. St. FX has been the focal point for that disparity during Fedchun’s tenure, winning the Loney Bowl three times to advance to the national semi-finals.
In 2018, the X-Men were shellacked 63-0 by the Laval Rouge et Or in the Uteck Bowl. In 2021, the embarrassment was repeated with a 61-6 loss to the Western Mustangs in the Mitchell Bowl. Finally, in 2022, they fell to the Saskatchewan Huskies by a score of just 36-19 — a game in which the Atlantic underdogs looked poised to pull off an upset until the final eight minutes.
According to Fedchun, that improved performance was a season-long goal for the team, as the conference’s string of high-profile blowout losses left a sour taste in all their mouths.
“I think we’ve got some absolute ballers out there but unfortunately, there’s is that AUS knock. We’ve been working on it, year in and year out, to be able to get over that and I think our game against U of S really impacted that,” he said. “It changed the perspective on that, that the AUS is here and we’re ready to compete.”
Fedchun will still have to battle that stigma as he makes his way to the professional level, but it is not the only concern teams have. At the CFL Combine in Edmonton last month, he measured in at six-foot-three and 226 pounds, well below the weight that scouts like to see for a player at his position.
The slight framed pass rusher is well aware of the questions being asked about his size and is already working on a solution.
“I was living on a university student budget, it’s kind of hard to be able to get the proper nutrition,” Fedchun explained. “Once school’s over with, I’m gonna be starting to get back to working a lot more and being able to afford food, I know my weight will go up.”
“I feel great around 240. That’s when I’m at my best for size and speed. I don’t want to get too big and feel sluggish and slow but I don’t want to be too small and get manhandled out there.”
Even if he can’t pack on enough pounds to take meaningful defensive snaps at the next level, Fedchun is still projected to be selected in the later rounds of the 2023 CFL Draft due to his potential value as a big-bodied special teamer. That’s a skill set needed by all nine teams, though there is one he would especially like to go to.
15 years after his first game at McMahon, he still carries a torch for the Stampeders.
“At any point to hear my name called would be something special but to be able to be a hometown kid, go back there and have my mom and dad in the stands again for a CFL game with my name on the jersey, that’d be some special stuff.”