Coleman’s Ty Anderson was awarded the title of All-American while attending the Offense-Defense Football summer camp in Seattle in July. The 14-year-old was also invited to participate in the 11th annual Offense-Defense Bowl Week starting Dec. 26 in Atlanta.

For Ty, the camp was an opportunity to gain exposure and be noticed by NFL coaching staff. Offense-Defense Sports has operated full-contact football camps in the United States for 47 years.

Ty, a grade nine student at Crowsnest Consolidated High School, was selected out of thousands of athletes across the United States to take part in Bowl Week, which takes place at Kennesaw State University in Atlanta, Georgia.

Ty and his father, Ian Anderson, will be flying out to Atlanta on Dec. 25, in time for the opening day awards banquet on Dec. 26. The teams, groups by age, will practice four times and play two games over the course of the next few days. Bowl Week culminates with a game involving the elite 88 Seniors and the Peach Bowl on Dec. 31.

Ty has been working hard during and after the course of the football season. “He’s a pretty diligent guy,” says his father . “He lifts weights and we practice together. He works on agility and on the tackle range. He feels he’s in the right condition to be able to do what he needs to technically.”

While Anderson says Ty is “over the moon” about the being selected to participate in Bowl Week, he’s still not sure whether football is something he would like to pursue professionally.

“We’ve never broached that subject with him,” says Anderson. “We tell him he can do what he wants and we’ll support him. We just tell him to keep playing until he’s satisfied with where he’s at.”

Anderson and his wife are quite excited themselves with Ty’s achievements. “It’s rewarding to see and it’s a pleasure to watch someone so committed,” says Anderson.

Ty is a defense lineman for the Pincher Creek Mustangs and has a list of accolades to his credit. He has been a previous MVP winner, a four-time Defensive Lineman of the Year winner for the Mustangs, a Southern Alberta Minor Football All-star, an ABC Border Bowl participant, and was selected this year for Football University’s prestigious Top Gun program.