Hamilton Ticats rookie training camp kicks off at Ron Joyce Stadium

It was a beautiful day for football Wednesday as day one of the Hamilton Ticat’s training camp began at Ron Joyce Stadium.

“They are kinda tip-toeing around out there,” said Scott Milanovich, the team’s head coach and offensive coordinator. “I want more excitement, I want more energy from them.”

Milanovich said the rookies are in pretty good shape, but he expects more from them when the vets arrive to training camp this weekend.

“The big part of this is getting in the film room, making the corrections, seeing what guys can transition from what they are being taught in the meeting room, back to the field,” said Milanovich.

On the field, weather was also a factor.

It got up to 19 degrees during practice, feeling up to 5 degrees hotter considering the low winds, few clouds and the amount of physical exertion taking place on the field.

Hydration was a top priority.

“It’s all really about getting up to speed,” said Rick Zamperin, the new play-by-play commentator for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.

Zamperin has called close to 200 Hamilton Tiger-Cats games in his play-by-play career.

From a Ticats perspective, Zamperin says the youthful experience seen today is indicative of new players coming up through U Sports in Canada and the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) system in the United States.

“There’s a lot of new guys being rookie camp, and they’re looking at the playbook,” said Zamperin. “They’re going into the meeting rooms, they are going to begin learning how to be a Canadian Football League player and in many respects a professional football player.”

Wednesday is the first day of the rookie camp for the Hamilton Ticats.

Coaches are getting to know players and players are getting to know what coaches want – sometimes learning a new way of doing things and a new playbook.

But for some, it’s as simple as a dream come true.

“Once I got drafted it was really cool, because a lot of the captains on the team, veterans like Bo Levi Mitchell, Jalen, a lot of guys hit me up – congratulated me on the draft,” said Isaiah Bagnah, a rookie defensive end.

“I feel like I was really ready coming into it knowing coach Walsh’s tenure at Colgate and what I was going to expect,” said Arvin Hosseini, a rookie offensive lineman.

Rookies have a few days to prove themselves before the veterans arrive Sunday.

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