Canadian Jay St-Hilaire Ready to Shine Again in Second Season as McCallie Quarterback
Chattanooga-(WDEF-TV)
Canadian quarterback Jay St-Hilaire showed up to McCallie at the start of pre-season camp last year
He jumped right in, earned the starting job, and nearly led Big Blue to the state title game before they lost by one point in the semifinals.
St-Hilaire made the cultural transition look pretty smooth, when it had to be pretty tough.
Said head coach Ralph Potter:”I think there were times last year where he could have just broken, and he didn’t.”
Yeah I mean think about it. St-Hilaire arrived at fall camp last year.
New country. New culture. New language.
Said St-Hilaire:”I think the biggest part was the language. My first language is French. Coming here I had to speak English every day with every guy.”
Said Potter:”It’s a completely different thing when you’re trying to call signals and things like that. Interpret from French to English, and you are doing it under pressure. It’s a whole different ballgame.”
Said St-Hilaire:”Even for football it’s a different game because here there are 11 guys per team on the field and in Canada it’s twelve. That was a difference also.”
And don’t forget about summer heat in the south.
Said St-Hilaire:”First week I came here last year I lost five pounds.”
But like Coach Potter said, kid didn’t break. He just started breaking down defenses.
Said St-Hilaire:”Around like our sixth game. That’s when I just felt confident and just felt like I was myself again.”
St-Hilaire threw for over 23-hundred yards last year with 25 touchdowns, and he added over 400 yards rushing.
Said St-Hilaire:”Skill set. I’d say I’m a pro-style quarterback that can run.”
Said Potter:”Well he has got great size, and he has got really good arm strength, so he throws the deep ball really, really well. He loves to run the ball. He’s a very physical guy. Ilike him running the ball.
Reporter:”Can he take it to another level this year given he has a year under his belt?”
Said Potter:”We are certainly expecting that yeah.” (chuckles)
