North Canton, Ohio – It was a humid Monday afternoon on the campus of Walsh University, as Coach Chuck Kyle ’69 and his team from the United States got a small taste of the flavor that accompanies international football.

Team USA and Team Sweden, who are preparing for this weekend’s first round of the IFAF Junior World Championship Tournament, practiced together, matched up in some hard-nosed one-on-one drills and even did a little scrimmaging, if you will.

Although Team USA definitely displayed its pigskin superiority, the players and coaches from Sweden didn’t leave the field with a bad taste in their mouths. Sweden did, in the words of its strength coach Niclos Carlson, get a good impression of just how many self-motivated players it has.

Sweden, the tournament’s sixth seed, could meet the United States again in a more serious venue, providing both teams are successful in their opening-round games.

Head coach Jan Jenmert will send his Sweden squad against third-seeded Mexico on Saturday at 4 p.m. in Canton’s legendary Fawcett Stadium. The United States, seeded second to Canada, will face seventh-seeded France at 8 p.m. The opening ceremonies are scheduled for 7 p.m.

If Sweden and Team USA are victorious, they will return to Fawcett Stadium on July 1 for a second-round match-up at 7 p.m.

“We needed to get a feel for international competition,’’ said Coach Kyle, who has a 26-year career record at Saint Ignatius of 262-58-1 and was recently elected to the Ohio High School Football Coaches Association’s Hall of Fame. “These are high school graduates who are going into college. We’ve never done international before.’’

Team USA definitely had its appetite for a little pad-rattling satisfied as the size, strength and athleticism of Coach Kyle’s team was on display early and often Monday afternoon.

However, as Kyle emphasized, his team really didn’t get a chance to hone its play with the 40-second clock or work against the chop block, which also is part of the international game.

“We’ll have to find some drills (for the chop blocking),’’ Kyle said. “Throw some bags at them or something. But today was just the benefit of not going against ourselves (in practice). That gets old pretty quickly. We got a lot of reps in, and that’s good.’’

FRANCE AT A GLANCE

A historical French twist: The first game of American football played in France was in 1919, when American soldiers who remained on French territory after World War I played in the former Parc des Princes stadium. The first French team, Spartacus de Paris, was formed in 1980 and in turn the French Federation of American Football was born in 1983 with nine clubs (teams) and 600 licensed players. In 2004, France earned its first international title when its junior national team won the European Junior Championship. France successfully defended its title in 2006.

Head coach: Oliver Moret. A resident of the city of Amiens Picardie, Moret, 41, is in his third season as head coach of Team France. He played for the French Senior National Team in 1991 and ’92.

Players to watch: Quarterback Maxime Sprauel (5-foot-11, 187 pounds); fullback Steven Joacin (5-10, 207); linebackers Giovanni Nanguy (6-3, 207) and Geoffrey Dieny (6-2, 190); and running back Thomas Ruiz (5-9, 154). Sprauel, 19, is the youngest quarterback at the domestic senior level in France. He is dual threat at passing and running the ball.

Coach Kyle on Team France: “Again, being the first game I’m concerned about the overall package of international football. The chop blocks, just the whole idea. It is play in when the 40 seconds begin, and our kids have never experienced that. (Sprauel) can do some good things with the ball and defensively they’ll be in a four-man front, where we’ve been going mostly against an odd front (in practices). So we have to start gearing up a little bit more for the even front. I’m going to be very conscious of field position because I think our defense is pretty good and I think we have a real good kicker/punter (Mike Loftus from Anaheim California Servite High School, an SMU recruit).’’

Kyle on the goal of winning the Gold Medal: “Winning is an earned blessing. You work hard at it, you execute and you don’t make mistakes. You practice hard to get to that level of execution.’’

Tickets: All-day general admission tickets are $10 and reserved tickets to all 12 games are $50. Tickets for fans 18 and under start at $5. Call (800) 574-5874 for more ticket information. The Bronze Medal Game is scheduled for July 4 at 7 p.m. and the Gold Medal Game will be played on July 5 at 1 p.m. Fox College Sports will provide live television broadcasts of the Bronze and Gold Medal games.

A passion for his Pacific Northwest

Jordan Poyer will probably never forget that Thursday night in late September last year.

“I was at the game, I ran on the field with everybody too, the second it was over,’’ said Poyer of Oregon State University’s 27-21 victory over then undefeated and top-ranked USC.

It’s a good bet the poised and humble Poyer will have some more memorable nights in Corvallis.

A standout in Team USA’s defensive secondary, the 6-foot-1, 180-pound graduate of Astoria (Ore.) High School is bound for Oregon State on a football scholarship.

But first things first, as right now the amiable and gifted Poyer is gearing up for what he hopes will be a Gold Medal memory.

“It’s a great experience for everyone out here,’’ Poyer said of representing his country in a world-wide event. “I’ve built some pretty good friendships that I will probably have for the rest of my life. People back home said they didn’t know if I could compete with these guys. But I feel like I’m doing a real good job.’’

Anyone who looks at Poyer’s accomplishments, as Coach Mike Riley of the Oregon State Beavers obviously did, wouldn’t question for a second his ability to compete.

In leading Astoria to a 14-0 state-championship season, Poyer was named both the offensive and defensive Player of the Year in Oregon. A quarterback and safety during his three-year varsity career, he accounted for 123 touchdowns. And oh, by the way, he also was a three-time all-state selection in baseball and helped Astoria to a state championship in that sport this spring.

“I love it there,’’ Poyer said of Oregon State. “I’ve been going to camps there since I was in the seventh grade and my mom went to school there. It’s just a great family atmosphere there, and that’s why I like it so much.’’

Poyer, who was drafted by the Florida Marlins as a center fielder in the 42nd round of this month’s Major League Baseball first-year player draft, said he plans to give both football and baseball a go at Oregon State.

In referring to the friendships he has made this past week and a half, Poyer talked about one of his defensive secondary partners – Saint Ignatius All-Ohio safety and Miami (Ohio) recruit Pat Hinkel.

“He’s a great guy, a cool guy,’’ Poyer said of Hinkel, who can share those special feelings of a state-championship season with his new friend from the Pacific Northwest. “I didn’t know what to expect coming here, but all of these guys are making it a lot of fun for me.’’

Congratulations to one of the best in his profession

Greg Shields from Cleveland, one of the outstanding football and basketball officials in Ohio, is among the eight officials from the United States who will be working the IFAF Junior World Championship.

Shields, who brings knowledge, class and sound judgment to both the football field and the basketball court, is among 31 game officials from four continents and 14 countries to be selected.

Chris Spielman to address Team USA

Chris Spielman, who was recently elected to the College Football Hall of Fame, was a four-time NFL All-Pro selection, an All-American at Massillon Washington and The Ohio State University, and is currently an ESPN college football analyst, will speak to Team USA tonight (Tuesday) at 8 in the Barrette Business & Community Center on the campus of Walsh University.

And last, but certainly not least

This corner would like to commend the Canton Repository for Sunday’s special section on the Junior World Tournament. It is not only a must for every fan who plans to attend the games, but also a keepsake for every coach and player who is competing in the historical event.

A tip of the cap goes out to sports editor Joe Frollo, page designer John Barns, Bob Kast and Michael Weiss for their cover and illustrations and to all of the outstanding reporters, including three this corner had the sincere privilege of covering games with during my years at The Plain Dealer – Chris Beaven, Todd Porter and Steve Doerschuk.
USA, USA, USA!

What more can we say?