Grade 12 athlete excels in
multiple roles with Redhawks
By Darren
Steinke
Gordie Howe Sports Complex
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| Parker Bond calls out signals from his middle linebacker position. |
The 17-year-old Grade 12 student is playing out his final campaign with the Bedford Road Collegiate Redhawks Football Team and has been a starter on the squad since his Grade 10 year. As the high school football season ventures into its final weeks, Bond said it didn’t seem that long ago when he started to suit up for the Bedford Road side.
“It feels like
just yesterday I was getting ready for my first spring camp back in Grade 9,”
said Bond. “It is weird now to be the oldest on the team and to be out there as
one of the main leaders of the team.
“It is awesome.
I’ve had a good senior season so far.”
Bond has been
playing the sport for a lengthy stretch. At age six he started playing flag
football out in Martensville after his mom got him registered with the program
there. The Martensville teams participate in the leagues overseen by Saskatoon
Minor Football.
As soon as Bond
could start playing tackle football, he joined the Martenville squads that play
out of the Kinsmen Football League. He remained in the KFL until he was able to
join the Redhawks.
Bond has done his
whole football journey while living out in Langham with his family helping him
commute into Martensville and Saskatoon over the years.
Those past
experiences have been valuable to Bond with the Redhawks. His natural position
is at middle linebacker on defence.
In 2025, Bond has
also played on every special teams unit, and at fullback, running back and
receiver on offence. He also had to take on the role of starting quarterback,
when Redhawks starter Gabriel Goyer went down with an injury.
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| Parker Bond (#44) makes lots of tackles as the Redhawks MLB. |
“I’ve been
playing for a while,” said Bond. “This year is probably so far one of the most
fun years of football I’ve had just playing and having fun and everything.”
Bond’s
presence on the team has been big for Redhawks head coach Dylan Andreychuk.
With the Redhawks program, Andreychuk usually ends up coaching a sizable number
of players who are gaining their first experience with the sport. The sideline
boss said that having players like Bond on the team who have had previous
experience with the sport are a huge help.
“Coaching at
Bedford Road, it is a grind sometimes,” said Andreychuk. “We’ve got to do a lot
of like square one teaching.
“But a kid like
Parker, he has right from day one in Grade 10 he joined us and he already had
experience playing minor football. It is just a nice luxury for us at our
school to have a guy with some knowledge of the game and experience to bring
into the team as a youngster. To have him three years as a starter, it is just
huge for us from a leadership standpoint and being able to mentor and lead some
of the other players on our team.
“Just in his
progression as a player and as a leader and all the work that he puts in during
the off-season, he is just a great role model for the rest of the guys on the
team.”
Both on and off the field, Andreychuk said Bond has been and continues to be a respectful young man, and he is a great student in the classroom.
“Everything that we hear from his teachers and everybody else in the building is very positive,” said Andreychuk. “We’re just very proud to have him as part of our team.
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| Due to injuries, Parker Bond took on the role of Redhawks starting QB. |
Right from
his start in the sport up to and including the current day, Bond enjoys the
emotions and atmosphere of being out on the field with his teammates.
“I just love
getting out there and getting hyped up with the teammates a lot and making big
plays and getting tackles and getting turnovers,” said Bond. “Defence is always
my favourite.”
Since Grade 8,
Bond has also been playing with Saskatoon Minor Football’s North Sask Academy
program in the spring. During his Grade 11 school year, Bond enrolled in the
Institute of Saskatchewan Football for the inaugural year the program was
operated by Saskatoon Minor Football. Bond said those experiences have been
valuable in his journey through the sport.
“They’ve helped
me so much,” said Bond. “I’ve played football year-round almost for the past
few years.
“To get coaching
from a bunch of different people for a bunch of different things, it is always
really good, and I’ve had some really good coaches in the past few years that
have really helped me get better.”
Bond said playing
for the Redhawks has been one of the great joys he has had in the sport. He has
enjoyed being on the field all of the time playing multiple roles.
Along with that,
Bond has had a blast with his teammate over the years. He said some of his most
special memories come from seeing all the school’s teachers and students
turnout big with lots of school spirit during the team’s Welcome Week game. The
team has a tradition of making the walk from Bedford Road Collegiate to Saskatoon
Minor Football Field for that contest in a jaunt that is dubbed “The Red Mile.”
“It has been a
lot of fun,” said Bond. “I got to start in Grade 10, and all since then, it
felt like the team has really been behind me and rallying behind me.
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| Parker Bond has displayed great versatility with the Redhawks. |
Bond has been
thankful for all the coaches he has had over the years, but he credits one
defensive coach for being his biggest influence in helping him out on that side
of the ball and overall loving the game.
“I’ve had a lot of really good coaches throughout the
years,” said Bond. “Probably the best coach I feel like I’ve had was when I was
in Grade 8 through Grade 11 in Devon Gilkinson.
“He was my D-coordinator for a few teams that I played for
in academy, and he was at Bedford Road for a couple of years, and he really
helped me develop.”
While Bond’s high
school football days are in their final weeks, Andreychuk believes his young
star can have a longer future in the game due to his yes-coach attitude and his
versatility.
“I think just
because of his attitude and how he immerses himself in the game and the way he
approaches practice and film study and nutrition, all the other things that it
takes to get that edge and to make it at the next level, he is already doing,”
said Andreychuk. “He has got those good habits.
“I’m very
confident that he could find a football team that he can contribute to after
high school.”
Bond said if all
his football dreams could come true he would like to play in the CFL and NFL
one day. With that noted, those are the dream goals.
For the moment,
Bond would like to find a place to play next season in the CJFL or the U Sports
ranks so he could continue to enjoy playing and being part of the sport of
football.
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| Parker Bond (#44) aims to enjoy his final weeks with the Redhawks. |
“I’ve been told I can do it. I’ll just go wherever I feel like I’m wanted. I’m going to be getting my film out there and sending some messages around throughout the season.
“Hopefully, I’ll
get a spot somewhere, hopefully close to home.”
To see the 2025 schedule for high school football, check out the Saskatoon Secondary Schools Athletics Directorate site at sssad.net/schedule/.
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