The Calgary Stampeders will soon offer hot breakfasts for their players after partnering with the Calgary Flames to ensure players are well-fed.
The Stampeders received a D-minus in food and nutrition on the inaugural CFLPA report card, which was unveiled in December. Players who have since left the organization complained that cereal and bagels were the team’s only offerings for morning meals, falling well short of what other CFL teams serve their players.
The comments even led the Winnipeg Blue Bombers to reference cereal and bagels in their 2025 schedule reveal video in January, roasting Calgary in the form of poetry.
Dave Dickenson, the head coach and general manager in Calgary, indicated that his team changed food providers this offseason as the club looks to improve its offerings.
The old company prepared breakfasts the day before, which Dickenson acknowledged fell short of the standard. He’s optimistic that the Flames, through their partner, will do a better job as food will be prepared elsewhere and delivered to the Stampeders on trucks.
“Five years ago, it wasn’t even expected to feed the guys,” Dickenson told the media late last week. “It was like, ‘You’ve got money, you could do your own thing,’ but times have changed. The athlete is catered to in a different way in college and I think it’s the right thing: get them good food and try to be healthy and enhance their performance.”
The 52-year-old defended some of Calgary’s existing services, touting the expertise of head athletic therapist Stephen Wady, equipment manager George Hopkins, and video operations director Ross Folan. He realized that there were areas that needed improvement, however, and feels confident that progress is being made.
McMahon Stadium is getting new turf this offseason, though the installation process has yet to begin. Dickenson indicated that the local soccer team’s first game is scheduled for May 11, which is also the first day of Stampeders training camp. Presumably, the new surface will be installed by then.
Dickenson also said that the players’ lounge, meeting rooms, and coaches’ area have all received upgrades, and the weight room has also been restructured.
The weight room has long been a complaint for players in Calgary. In the recent CFLPA report card, one member of the Stampeders commented that most players have to get a gym membership to get a “real workout” during the season.
“You want to be a winning football team, but you want to make sure your players feel like they’re important. We’ve done that. We consistently take care of your families — feel our organization has, since I’ve been here, always been into the player’s life, not just as a football player. We never take a short-term approach — we’re a long-term approach organization, meaning if you have an injury, we’re thinking long term,” said Dickenson.
“We’ve been doing that consistently, but some of that other stuff, yeah, let’s try to enhance what we have and make it the best possible. We were already doing that, and certainly hope it makes an impact on our organization this year, as well as in the future.”
This past season, the Stampeders missed the playoffs for the first time since 2004, finishing fifth in the West Division at 5-12-1. Facing pressure to get back into the postseason in 2025, Calgary is hoping its off-field changes will lead to on-field results.
“When you lose, you’ve gotta be careful of just doing the same things over and over again,” said Dickenson. “Everybody in our organization looked in the mirror and, obviously, we had a lot of change, so that happens, but we are trying to change the voice a little bit.”
The post Calgary Stampeders partner with Flames to upgrade food service after player complaints appeared first on 3DownNation.
