https://atgridiron.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/ATG-Keith.png ()Keith enjoyed a long career in professional football playing for 16 years. He spent time in the NFL, CFL, Arena Football as well as in European Football Leagues. He started out in football in grade 8, with soccer being his sport of choice up till then. It’s still actually his favourite sport now. His mom didn’t want him to play because games were on Sunday, and they had to attend church. However his coach volunteered to pick him up after church and take him to the games himself, which his mother eventually agreed to. The rest is history. He went on to Jr. College, and then from there chose to attend East Carolina University. He was recruited by a few schools, but chose the Pirates due to being able to start quickly, as well as better weather than other options. He doesn’t like cold weather. Ironically, he ended up playing in Canada, where he made a name for himself quickly. At ECU, he had a great career setting school records as a return man. That led to opportunities in the NFL, but he wasn’t able to stick with a team. Knowing about the CFL, due to a coach being a brother to CFL great Danny McManus, he came up to Canada to play. The Montreal Alouettes had his rights so he played there. He made a big splash his rookie season, earning East rookie of the year & special teams player of the year. He also won the Grey Cup that season as well. After another missed attempt to land in the NFL, he came back to the CFL and bounced around between Montreal, Winnipeg, Toronto and Edmonton. Learning the business side of the sport and making tough decisions on where to play and choosing money vs stability. He went to Europe to play in leagues in France, Austria and Germany where he discovered there was a love of American Football there too. He also got a taste of coaching, getting the opportunity to coach while there as well. He also played some Arena Football which was a fun time for him. With his style of playing, it was an ideal fit for him. Only downfall was going into the walls during the games. One time he ended up in the stands a few rows up. After moving on from his playing days, he guest coached with some CFL teams trying to get his foot in the door for a full-time opportunity. He now has that opportunity landing a spot on the BC Lions coaching staff. He is excited to start his 1st season with the team and is looking forward to a great season. For more information on Keith and the BC Lions, follow the links below. website: https://www.bclions.com/keith-stokes-special-teams-offensive-assistant/ (www.bclions.com)Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/keith.stokes3/?hl=en (www.instagram.com/keith.stokes3/) Resourceshttps://www.atgridiron.com (www.atgridiron.com)http://www.symfonies.ca (www.symfonies.ca)https://amzn.to/2Sef9Rx (www.audible.com)
