The Gospel In The Game Sports Podcast
Conversation and stories about real athletes and the journey thru sport, faith and life.
Connecting athletes, sports families and the church. Build bridges and telling real stories to help repair, build and grow people.
Hosts Dan Dromarsky and Dave Dawson
The Gospel In The Game Sports Podcast
Zion Dogbe-Brown - Faith, Family, And Football
What if speed is only half the story and the real engine is conviction? We sit down with Calgary Colts running back Zion Dogbe Brown to explore how faith, family, and relentless preparation turn raw talent into purposeful impact. From growing up in a home with ten siblings and a single mother to leading on the field with a calm, explosive style, Zion shows how character is built in community and proven under pressure.
Zion opens up about the spiral of worry after missing a day of prayer and how Scripture reframed guilt as a gift that points us back to what matters. He shares how team Bible studies create space for honesty and accountability, and why opposition in the locker room often signals that light is doing its work. We dig into the artistry of playing running back—pace, patience, and vision—and how humility keeps the spotlight aimed upward by mentoring the next generation. His take: excellence becomes worship when we give away what we’ve been given.
The conversation turns practical and specific: off-season nutrition, measured weight gain and a lean cut to unlock burst, hydration, protein, creatine, and the unglamorous work of cooking and finishing every plate. Zion sees his body as a temple and his routine as stewardship, not vanity. He credits mentors who modelled discipline across roles and special teams, and he pays it forward through one-on-one mentorship that turns potential into progress. Along the way, you’ll hear rapid-fire fun—oxtail love, Leon Bridges on the playlist, and a verse that keeps him grounded.
If you’re a Christian athlete, a coach, or anyone navigating pressure with purpose, this story will meet you where you are: honest about struggle, bold about growth, and clear about where the glory goes. Subscribe, share with a teammate, and leave a review to help more listeners find conversations that move faith from the sideline to the centre. What part of Zion’s playbook are you taking into your week?
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Yum, if I have to take you and put you in the Winter Olympics tomorrow and you participate in a sport, what sport are you playing in the Winter Olympics?
SPEAKER_03:I think if I was in the Winter Olympics, I would have to do snowboarding. And I have to be going down those hills, doing those jumps. It looks so fun. And I I've always I skateboarded a lot when I was younger, so I I love that stuff.
SPEAKER_02:You know what? Snowboarding is great. It's amazing how much edge work is with it. It's it is kind of scary though.
SPEAKER_03:It is. It's nerve-wracking, especially at COP. Like, that's a small hill compared to the many ones around the world that you get to do as a snowboarder. And even that, like, it's terrifying. But I mean, you gotta face your fears, right?
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, it's all absolutely. Zion doesn't need any help with speed, I can tell you that much. And watching this guy over the last couple of years, every time I think of going downhill though, I think of that uh National Lampoons Christmas vacation. That's how I would envision like the with the turbo underneath the sled with uh I mean Dan doesn't watch movies, so he's gonna be able to do it.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, I've actually I've I've never I've never actually seen that movie. Everyone talks about it every Christmas.
SPEAKER_01:I mean, I haven't seen it either. TV and superpower explosion of speed that I've watched as I am participate with forever, but neither of you guys have seen it, so I'll just be on an island by myself. But that's okay.
SPEAKER_02:Welcome to the Gospel in the Game Sports Podcast, where sports and faith collide with your hosts Dan Dramaski and Dave Dawson.
SPEAKER_01:Um, this is the last episode of season two of the Gospel in the Game. So what better way to end it than with the bang a guy that has literally turbojets on his back of himself? So it's Zion Dogby Brown, the Calgary Colts, at a Prairie Football Conference in the Canadian Junior Football League. And Zion and I met a couple of seasons ago a number of times, as I've been able to broadcast some of his games. Um, so Zion, thanks for joining us today. Um, we generally ask how do you describe yourself as the opening question? So if I were to throw you the question of who are you and how would you describe yourself to a total stranger?
SPEAKER_03:Um, I the way I describe myself is just somebody that like is always here to learn, but always I'm very firm in who I am myself. Like I know where I came from, I know what I've gone through, but I also don't know where I can go. And I've been surprised throughout my life with like many opportunities and everything like that. So I never take anything um further than it is at face value. Like when I meet people, I like to have conversations breaking the ice, but like I also want to get deep into it to understand who you are, and then after that is like how I get to know people and those connections like that.
SPEAKER_01:I also didn't do a great job describing myself or Dan. So I'm Dave Dawes, and this is Dan Joe Marusky. We are this is the gospel of the game. We are the hosts of the show. Zion Doug B. Brown is a running back at explosive speed. Now, so we'll we'll obviously talk a little bit about football today, but I really want to dive into your faiths. You're like right away when we ask people, it's such a fun question to ask because you get so much diversity in that. Somebody might say, you know, I'm an athlete here and there, but right away you went into character. So walk me into the life of Zion Dogby Brown, and and and I think caring about people is probably something that's important to you and have been ingrained into your life for a long time.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, yeah, definitely. I mean, I'm I'm one of ten with siblings. Like, I have a lot of siblings around me. I grew up in a pretty good family, but I also had a single mother. So like I grew up the way I grew up and grew is by the people around me, pushing each other and also having the opportunities that people have given me to figure out who I'm who I am as a person and like just explore my life with people that care about me and want to see me at those levels. So um, I think character means a lot, and especially when it's built from the people around you and the experiences you've had, like that that's something you can't trade, and that's the most important thing. And I think that's just like the goal of life. Like having a community, building a community, like that's those are important things.
SPEAKER_02:So a young man, big family. What uh what order are you out of the 10?
SPEAKER_03:I'm middle, like I'm dead middle, dead middle.
SPEAKER_02:Okay, so you got you got a little bit of an example ahead of you, and you got people that you're leading behind you, and you talk about the importance of community, being involved in that community and seeing a family as an athlete. How how important is the family dynamic as your support group as an athlete?
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, well, I mean, like well, like what they said, like you want to, it's hard for me not to talk about um character, faith, and football all separately because like to me it's all one thing, like it's just about how you view things and how you go about it. But like for me, um, like just being a running back, like uh I I play because I play for my teammates and I play for my family and I play for everybody else. But also as a running back, you know that every single time you get the ball, there's a hundred percent chance you're getting hit. So every time you get that ball, you know what you're getting yourself into, you know what you're doing, but you also have to remember why you're doing it. Like there and even with saying that, the like for example, most games like that first two quarters, like that's when you play your hardest. You really want to set that, set that tone of why you're here and what you're playing for so that the other person in front of you can feel that. They understand, like, this is gonna be a long game, he's here to win, he wants those yards, and he's gonna attack. And then for me, it's just I know why I'm playing, and I know why I'm playing like this, because my brothers on the team and the people that are supporting me and have gotten me to this level, and it would only be disrespectful enough for me not to play my absolute hardest and not give it my all.
SPEAKER_01:I want to backtrack a little bit as I love the way you talked about that, and I've I've literally watched you hit the line of scrimmage and attack it with with absolute ferocity, uh, which is you know, we'll get to a little bit here today. But you said two things that I think a number of people right away have a paint a picture in their mind. So, number one, you're in a family of ten. Number two, a single mother. So alone when you think of a family of three or four, you go, wow, sibling rivalry, there must be a lot going on there. Then you add a new dynamic to that. So why don't we start with you know the the the 10 siblings, right? Take me into that dynamic of learning to live uh in in that aspect. And what was family life like growing up with a family that big?
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, I mean, it's fun, as as you can assume, like there's 10 of us. So, I mean, there's so many of us to be with, and um, it's like having your own personal best friends, but also like um growing up, like like I said, I had a single mother, so um, she had to work a lot. She obviously, and that's who my mother is, and so we depended on each other as siblings, and um especially just not having a father figure. I looked up to my brothers, and my sisters were learning how to be a woman through my mother, but they were also learning how to be a mother by raising me as well, and trying to take me and my younger siblings on, and same with my older brothers. So um growing up, I I was very fortunate to have people around me that care and also um that are in the same position that can understand what I'm going through, and it's not like I'm talking to somebody that I have to explain exactly what I'm going through, like I can talk to them and we can understand it, and then that way, like finding solutions is easier because you know what you're in, you know what you're in, and having more insight and having a different view helps. So I my my brothers, for example, I would have never played football if it wasn't for my older brothers. They both started playing football, and they were telling, like, I remember the day vividly, like they told me about like what discipline is like for them, and like how how much in real life it comes with football, and it's like it's a it's a big toll on you. And they were just explaining it. I'm like, well, like it sounds like they found their meaning, like they found something that is giving them purpose, and that's when I got into it. And I was lucky enough to keep doing it and just keep going off of them. And then even like with my sisters, like my sisters are very independent people, but they also taught me how to be compassionate, they taught me how to uh be a better man and how to be a man to women, and just like things like that. So I've been very, very blessed and lucky.
SPEAKER_02:Uh, former running back Calvin McCarty, I had the privilege of playing golf with him a couple years ago, and he talked about the importance of his mother in his life. Talk a little bit about you've mentioned your mom a couple times, talk about the importance and the impact that she had on raising you as a young man without a father present.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, I mean, she she taught me what grit is. Like she goes to work, she provides for us financially, but she's also there for us emotionally. And I feel like me growing up and taking more responsibility on as a man is like understanding how to be a role model, how to be a friend, and how to like manage the two things where I'm not too much of the other and not enough of the other. So she my mom did a very good job at teaching me and giving me discipline when I need it, but also understanding how to be my friend and when to talk to me about my issues and making it a comfortable space for me to just talk to her about anything. Like it, and it doesn't have to be serious, it could be something that's silly, and I know I can go to my mom and talk to her about it, and she wouldn't be pushing it away just because she just worked a 12 hour day knowing that she has to pay for rent, but also she's tired, she has to do it again the next day, and me talking about something she doesn't care about, she still gives me the attention, anyways. So I've I've definitely learned a lot from her, and she's set an amazing example of who I can be and who I'm trying to be today.
SPEAKER_02:Talk to me about the importance of faith with that question. So it's kind of a follow-up question to with that. You talked about the importance of your mom, all the wonderful things she does. Talk about the importance of faith and what that means to you looking into your future, having the history of being raised in a big family with a single mom. How isn't important with you, including your faith, not only to become a man of God, but now to prepare yourself for your future of what the Lord has in store? Um talk about that.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah. So I think that there's two things that uh recently I've focused on, and I know it's something that I'm probably gonna be working on for the rest of my life, but the one thing most recently that I thought about is like not avoiding problems. Um, and even well, okay, I say they go hand in hand. Avoiding problems and um worrying, like worrying about what's gonna happen next, and because I'm worried about it, I'm scared of it, scared of what's unknown or whatever it may be. I avoid certain things. So, for example, last season, um like I fell into a little bit of a slump where I wasn't praying and I missed one day, and because I missed that one day, I was felt bad. I started worrying about like what I'm gonna do, and then because of that, I stopped praying the next day, and then I kept letting it build against me. And it's like, why are you worrying about something when you have the opportunity to do it anyways? Like, I had every opportunity, Lord woke me up that day, and that was more than enough to tell me that I should be doing it, and so my mom, like, whenever she like I tell her something and I get upset about it, like she reminds me, like, do you not trust God? Do you not think that he has a bigger plan for you? And if he does, why would you worry? Like, there's no reason for you to worry about what's gonna happen because the Lord has a plan for you and it's gonna work out exactly how it is, and it's obviously easier said than done, but at the end of the day, it is really just that simple. Like, you really just gotta keep going forward and be grateful for every moment that you have. And if you spend time on worrying and avoiding things, it's only gonna come back and bite you, but you're also not being productive and you're not going forward. And you you stop that, it brings you further back. So I think that's how I kind of see it with faith. And I feel like it's something I'm gonna work on, I'm gonna continue to work on, and I'm gonna have to work on because life happens, situations happen, and it's hard not to worry. But I just gotta remember that my Lord always has me, and He has a plan, and everything's happening for a reason.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, and I think design, you know, trial trauma, trials, difficulty are have been common in society, they will continue to be because we live in a broken world, and you know, there's difficulty that we face. And you talk about last season, you know, Keon Raymond Jr. getting a chance to play with him. And I've obviously had a relationship with Keon Raymond uh for a number of years, senior, who still keep in touch with him. And when I first met you and I heard your story, it reminded me of Keon's testimony of when he had to, his dad left at 13 and he told his mom, I'm the man of the house. Now I'll protect you, I'll provide for you. And yeah, I thought it was so unique as a way of kind of owning his masculinity and saying, I could look at this like a victim and say, Oh my goodness, this traumatic traumatic incident happened to me, and I could use that as ammo to go the opposite way, but instead he he took it on a positive way. So, you know, now with that mindset of 10, you know, 10 siblings, single mom, how has the Lord helped you to shape yourself as a man, learning that from a woman and other brothers, and how has he allowed other brothers in Christ, whether in sport, teammates, etc., to come alongside you and help fill those gaps in the areas that you might feel you lack in your manhood?
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, that well, I mean, communication is definitely one and like having like building that community and having a community is the first like is surrounding yourself with people that like you can have those open communications with and just those conversations that are tough to have, but um it's also in the preparation, like uh this year, especially, like one thing I'm very proud of with my team is we do do Bible studies together and we talk and we hold each other accountable, and we also have a space for us to talk exactly about what we're feeling, so that if we are feeling that like we're lacking in something, one we prepare by having the Lord's word with us because again, facing anything that you're worried about or scared about, the only thing you can be is prepared to face anything, and and then second is just having the community around you and the people around you that can relate because they're in the same position as me, and then having a different um perspective on it just helps as well. So, I mean, yeah, like again, I think with me not having my father around, like it it's never like it never worried me because I had my mom and like I didn't have to grow up thinking about like oh like I wish I had a dad. No, I had a mom that did everything she could, and she did everything that a dad would have done, anyways. So I I just feel like it's just finding out what kind of every day I'm finding out what kind of man I want to be for myself, and just allowing myself to have that grace because sometimes I'm too hard, but I need to give myself that grace so I can learn who I am and allow myself to go through those experiences.
SPEAKER_01:So I love how you said that, that I didn't need this because I had this, right? So take me into a time and uh as you're reading the word, you're in intimacy with the Lord, you're spending time whether you're worshiping or you're praying, you know, take me into a moment that the Lord just gave you this revelation of who you are in Christ, right? When I when I saw you walk out of the tunnel onto the field, I I looked at you and I was just like, that that is a man. And when you told me that you were like, you know, never had a dad, you're single mom, 10 10 brothers. I was like, okay, I don't see that because often people carry that trauma, right? They they, you know, as you would label it air quotes as trauma. People would say trauma. So, you know, what take me into a moment intimacy with the Lord as you're reading scripture and he's downloading and he's telling you all these great things of who you are. Has there been a moment like that that you can encourage somebody with?
SPEAKER_03:Uh yeah, definitely. And honestly, really recently, um, like like again, like I said, my something that I've been working on is trying not to avoid problems just because I'm worried about whatever may happen. But one thing I read about, and I can't quote it directly, but it was about convictions and the way that God tries to um speak to us, and it's not always in the way that we feel like, and then like I always and I'm like I said, I'm very hard on myself. So sometimes when things go wrong, like I feel it, like I feel it in my soul, I feel it in my heart, like I'm like sitting in my bed, I'm wondering what I'm doing. But like I and when I read about it in the scriptures, like God's telling you that because He's telling you there is something right, there's something that you need to do, and again, the best thing you can do is prepare yourself by reading the word so you can handle each situation as it presents itself. And so I would say to anybody, um just make sure you prepare yourself. And feeling guilty and feeling bad is never a negative thing, like it's only a positive thing because you can only get better from that. You know exactly what you did wrong, and uh you only have one choice get better and not stay where you're at. So I think um, yeah, convictions like how the Lord speaks to us and um the way he makes us feel, uh it's it's always like he's always like he always has a plan and it's never a negative, like he's always trying to look out for us. So even if you feel crappy about what you're going through or what happened or what you did or whatever, like he's telling you that for a reason because he knows that's not who you are, and he knows who you can be. So you read, you get that knowledge, and then you apply that to yourself, and you'll be okay.
SPEAKER_02:As an athlete, athletes are all about preparation. You're preparing, you don't just, oh, I just played, no big deal. I'm gonna do nothing and sit around until next game. Athletes don't function like that. Uh, when you have something that you know is coming against you, whether it's an uh opposition or maybe it's even opposition in the dressing room or how you carry yourself or how you live in regards to being a Christian, uh, how do you prepare yourself to deal with the opposition on the other side? As in like the team or like locker room, like just yeah, just as those that are against you as a Christian athlete, because I think often we like we can handle our opposition, the opposite team. But yeah, how do you how do you do it when like maybe the opposition against you as someone who walks in faith is in your own locker room?
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, I mean, that's that's pretty good. Well, see, and especially when it comes to sports, one thing like my grandma, she's a pastor, and I grew up in the church, and that's why I am who I am. And my grandma, like, one thing that she made very abundantly clear to me is that the gifts that I have with football is for through God, and not only is it through God, it's me displaying Lord's glory and his creation to everybody else in the world. Like this is my platform to show what God gives me. So when people are opposed to that or are against that, it's usually because they're not right with God themselves. If they can appreciate what God is uh presenting to the world, they need to fix that themselves. So I don't pay any mind to it. And I know that if that is the case, it's because it's working, and that means they're questioning themselves and they're questioning what they're going through. And then again, eventually all roads will lead to where you should be, which is God. And if that's not the route they're taking, then I can't control that. But at least I know what I know, and yeah.
SPEAKER_01:What I know about you is you're a freak athlete. I broadcast a game so you went 100 yards for a touchdown when you put over 200 yards along the ground. You know, you're a guy that just continues to do it at an elite level, yet you're so humble. Take me into that process of separating the success of where you want to take it onto yourself, and then how you look at that and go, yes, as you just talked about, the Lord gave me these gifts. I'm stewarding them because I want to use it for his glory. Maybe there's a Christian athlete listening to this and they're having a hard time navigating back and forth between, yes, it's about me, no, it's about you, Lord. Yes, it's about me, no, it's about you. How do you win at that knowing that I can perform at a high level, but it's really given to me and it's used for God's glory.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah. I mean, well, for me personally, and I can't speak for everyone, but for me, myself, like one thing I'm very passionate about, and in the future you guys will see me doing because I will get it done, is I love coaching. And I think with having the blessings that he's given me, the only thing you can do is give it on to the next person. That's you keep it going. So if that's if anybody is struggling with their own um like their own success and trying to navigate uh where it should be going, it shouldn't be going to you. It should be praise to God, and it should be giving on to the next person. We he didn't equip us with this just for us to keep it to ourselves, it was to show the world to glorify his word and who he is, and then once you do that, like that light shines on everybody else, and it reaches people that are far away and not near, but they can see it from just your actions and not your words. So I think that um yeah, like the next thing for me is I I take my work very serious and I I treat it as an art. And the way I see art is you you always want to be the master of your creation and what you're trying to do. And we're saying that like I just I'm trying to find a way to make that art shown to everybody, and then them seeing that's how I express myself, and them being able to make that art themselves and express themselves in their own way, and I think that's where people will flourish, and then you don't gotta worry about the rest, about the success and all that because you know you're a master of what you're doing, you took the time to perfect it, and then you can teach it to somebody else, and then you can see their version of it, and then you know that's an expression of their selves.
SPEAKER_02:Zion, we've talked about community, we've talked about family, we've talked about the importance of even having desires outside of the sport you're playing right now, even with coaching. Uh, talk a little bit to me about mentoring. You're a young guy. Um, how has mentoring been important to you coming up to where you're at? And where do you see yourself in regards to mentoring?
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, well, I mean, for a mentor that I had myself, there's a guy named Ellie Buka. He used to play for the Sask Rough Riders, Calgary St. Peters. He also made it to the NFL, and he's a guy from Canada. He's born in Montreal, and um before like before him, like um, I never understood like that art aspect of football and just like the creation of what you're making and expression of yourself. And I was lucky enough to have somebody who cared about football so much that they wanted to share that with everybody else. And one thing that he definitely taught me is like discipline and um just how to be uh dependable and accountable. Like he really helped me put that in perspective of to see where he's been and where I can go and every little thing that it takes to get there. Because he was a guy who played every single special teams in college, he was a receiver, he was a running back, he was a quarterback, he was a DB, and he was a special teams player. And it takes a lot to do that, and it also takes a lot of discipline to make sure that you know exactly what you're doing and you're not messing up. So I've been lucky enough to have somebody like that in my life. And actually, this year I just started uh a mentorship program with uh raw football where players were able to choose me as their mentor, and uh just I'd be able to work with them. So recently I had a kid named Ryan Amberry who's a running back for Bronas High School, and he's in grade 12. And I'm so blessed that he chose me because I watched this guy's kid's film, and I'm like, you're you're literally a star in the making, and he didn't even know it yet. Like he thinks that like he's just a player that's should get an opportunity at U Sports. So I'm like, man, you're like you have CFL talent, and once you like get yourself out of this high school football and you can really see how big the world is and you see how to make this your own art and an expression of yourself, like there's nobody that's gonna be able to stop you. And uh I'm so grateful that he chose me because we have we do Zoom meetings as well, like twice a week, and we have these conversations, and to see how happy and excited he gets about football, like just makes me know that like I'm doing the right thing, and like this is where I'm supposed to be. And yeah, I just love football, and I'm I'm so grateful to have that guy do that for me.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, and and the faith community in sport is so great. That's what we love about this show. And and you know, you talked about mentorship. I love that question about mentorship because I think mentorship is so important to have people that you're chasing after, people that are running alongside you, and people you're bringing along with you. Now, an important component of mentorship when I'm looking for a mentor is when somebody has something that I want. I'm not gonna look at somebody whose life is out of order and go, well, I want to chase them because like they're not a good example of what I want. No, you're gonna be a good example. So, you know, when I look at you and your body, the way that it's crafted, you know, scripture talks about the body being the temple of the Holy Spirit, and then no one ever hated his own body, rather that he cares for and nurtures it. So, how much has taken care of your body and making sure that you're stewarding it well in order for that you can use it to a high level? You talked about a creation, right? Like so in a creation and art. So if I'm caring for and creating something, I'm not gonna abuse it, I'm not gonna you know pick it apart and hate it. I'm gonna take care of it. So, how much has how have you had the peace of the Lord in and and going after pursuing excellence in health and being able to take care of your body in order to do what you do at a high level?
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, I mean, I feel like you you you said it pretty good, man. Like you hit it right on the dot. Like, I think it's important that we um like we take it seriously, but um we're saying that like it's just consistency and being disciplined and um just like respecting yourself and respecting what you have, like you don't want to put it to waste because you know that you were blessed with an opportunity to help other people and show the rest of the world. You do not want your downfall to be an injury because you didn't take care of yourself, and because of that, you don't get to inspire the next generation for what you can do, and then you're looking for your purpose. Like if you found your purpose and that's what you have to do to make sure you see it through, then that's exactly what you got to do to see it through.
SPEAKER_01:No, I asked that question because you and I um had talked about when you came up to Edmonton and broadcasting game. You said you lot lost a lot of weight this year and you wanted to be leaner. That's an important part of your position, right? There are guys that I think running back, there's some diversity in body types there, but you had specifically told me it was a goal of yours. Take me into the conviction of that, where that came from and how you invited the Lord into that process.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, I well, I mean, it was one trusting the process. Um, like every day, it was I didn't see like results every single day. And that's just with football and everything else. So it was just staying consistent with um the idea of like I needed this season is my year and every opportunity that I have I can't let go aways. And if I'm gonna be lucky enough to show my talents, I need to make sure that I'm at that level. So from I started like we started training uh like maybe a month after the season stopped. And ever since then, like it's everything comes hand to hand, it's routine, it's um discipline, and it's just having uh that step every single day, and like allowing every every time the Lord wakes me up, I have an opportunity to do better and uh be consistent. So I just take it at face value, and I used to go exactly like that. It's just the effort, it's the attempt, and that's all that matters.
SPEAKER_01:Okay, so when we uh chatted, you came up to do uh play against the Edmonton Wildcats, and I broadcast those games. You had we met in the tunnel and you told me about the discipline of the amount of weight you lost, your diet, the routine. Take me into that. Give me the specifics of you were at this weight, you went down to that weight. What was that process like to cut certain foods out? What do you eat? How do you get to where you are to what you can be able to do at a high level and how convicted you were to that goal and not wavering from it?
SPEAKER_03:Yeah. Um, so yeah, I ended the season last year at about 168 to 70 pounds. And my goal is to put on more weight, but also be lean while doing it. So um my goal with doing that is I got into my nutrition by taking pro two protein shakes a day. I'd have uh I was taking creatine as well, and I was probably drinking anywhere from like four to five liters of water. I'd try every day. And then with my meals, I was eating three to four meals a day, and it mostly consisted of like dumplings, like flour-based um carbs, and then just as much meat as possible. I'd just stir up some chicken, make some beef, whatever I could do, and um spaghetti to get the energy back up. And then I the highest I got during this off-season was 196, uh, just around there, 196, 197. And then right before the season, I cut down and now I'm weighing around like 180, and I've definitely felt my best. And um, it was very it was super hard. Like it was hard just to um make the stuff, but to also finish everything I was making. Um, that was one of the more difficult parts, and it was just about staying disciplined and remembering the goal and like the reason of why I was doing it in the first place, and um yeah, like it was it was just focusing on that and just wanting to not uh waste any time that I had left with playing football and just come come out with full clarity, knowing that everything that I did was to my utmost, and I just can leave the game knowing that I gave it all I have.
SPEAKER_02:I love that. Two part two parts of that response I love giving it all I had and eating as much meat as possible. I love it, and that brings us to our favorite portion of this interview. Well, there's a lot of great portions of this interview, but I have a wonderful portion of this interview called Rapid Fire Questions. Zion, we're gonna give you a whole bunch of rapid fire questions, and you're gonna give us some rapid fire answers. Okay, and uh let's go. You ready to rip? Okay, I think I am okay. Based on your last response, what is your favorite meat to consume?
SPEAKER_01:Oxtail. Oxtail. Yeah. That's not your traditional meat. What is that like texture-wise? And so good. And when did you start getting into that?
SPEAKER_03:Oh, it's a it's uh, I wouldn't say it's a Jamaican dish, it's more of a Caribbean dish, but it's like a meat that comes, it's on the bone. It's a small, it's like made out of cowtail, so it's small little like vertebrae brown bones with meat around it, and it's so succulent, and it tastes exactly like I would say close to like braised beef, and it just comes straight off the bone. You usually put it in like a slow cooker or like a big pot, and you let it cook for a couple hours and it gets really tender and soft, and uh, it's it's amazing. If you guys haven't had some yet, you guys should definitely go get some.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, Dan and I were thinking of going for wings, but it might be oxtail for sure. I mean 10 siblings in the house. How many bathrooms? And how did how are you able to navigate through Sharon bathrooms?
SPEAKER_03:Two bathrooms, and I never had a priority. Sisters, females in the house always had priority. We just got lucky to brush our teeth before we had to leave the school. So I prepared the night before, made sure I have everything showered, clothes were ready, everything, and then when I wake up, I was fighting just to brush my teeth.
SPEAKER_02:Wow, wow, fighting to brush your teeth.
SPEAKER_01:Okay, that might be the name of this episode. Fighting to brush your teeth.
SPEAKER_02:I like that. I like that. All right, we're going on a road trip. You got two friends to bring with you that you're tight with, and we're we're crossing the country, across in the nation. Who are you bringing and why are you bringing them?
SPEAKER_03:My girlfriend, um, her name's Jessica. She we listen to the same music. We love listening to music together. It's one of our favorite things to do. So I know that the music will be perfect while we're driving. And the next person I'd bring is my brothers because we grew up. Well, I can't, I won't choose one so that nobody feels offended, but we grew up watching a lot of movies, TV shows, or not even TV shows, just movies. Like, we didn't, we weren't really big on cable. We my mom used to take us to Walmart. It was those five dollar movie days and those bins. We would take every movie that we thought we would want to watch that week, and that's what we'd watch. So they would understand all my references, all my jokes, and everything. Because it all goes back to those movies we watched.
SPEAKER_01:Imagine that somebody understanding references and jokes because of movies, Dan. Is there anything you can glean from that? I don't watch any movies at all, but that's okay. Come on, Dan. You and I can bond over movies, Zion. That could be everything.
SPEAKER_02:I watched I'm selective in my movies, let's put it that way.
SPEAKER_01:Fairness, okay. All the 1980s kids' movies is what Dan consumes, and that's fine. He's got more than enough things to do, doesn't have time for movies. Coach, father, pastor, mentor add the list on Chaplin from there. Zion, um, what song are you listening to? You know, is it what players in pregame warm-up have their beats playlist? Do you have some worship in there? What are you listening to when you're getting ready for a game?
SPEAKER_03:Absolutely. I mean, I'm I'm always a person who's always like energetic and ready to go. So, like getting hyped is not my issue, but settling myself down is something I focus more on. So, an artist that I really have been listening to recently is Leon Bridges. He's been one of my favorites, and um this is just a personal favorite, but I like listening to Adele and Lofi. I don't know if you guys heard of them, but very good. Well, I know Adele. If you haven't, then we're gonna have to have a talk after the call, and I'll give you some music. But yeah, those are my those are my go-to.
SPEAKER_01:As Dan says hello from the other side.
SPEAKER_02:Uh okay, Leon Leon Bridges I can I can roll with. That's okay. That's okay. Um favorite running back growing up that's not Barry Sanders or Emmett Smith.
SPEAKER_03:Oh, well yeah, easy. Leave LeVeon Bell. Le'Veon Bell for sure. Like without a doubt. The way he moved through that pocket, like that is for sure an expression of himself and the cre the art he's doing right there. Like I've never seen anybody else play with like his type of pace, patience, and vision. Like yeah, he he's definitely my one of my favorite running backs of all time.
SPEAKER_01:I can certainly see that. And as a Steelers guy in the early days, I can appreciate that as well. Uh Zion, a scripture that uh you would, if tattooed on your body or or you would have on a shirt or something that is really near and dear to you in this season right now. What's um a Bible verse that's really close to you?
SPEAKER_03:Well, I think this I would personally right now I'd keep it simple just because uh if I were to put any ink on my body, I want it um I wanted to like ink with uh scripture, I want it to be something that like um can reach many people and not be subjective to one certain thing. So I think 413 Philippines is always a good one to have. Trust in Christ. And uh yeah, I think that's the one I probably fight on my body.
SPEAKER_02:You gotta go back in time and talk to the 10-year-old self, give them a word of encouragement. What are you telling them?
SPEAKER_03:Keep your eyes on the ball when you're catching it, never give it up.
SPEAKER_01:Catch the ball with your eyes, they say notch your hands for sure. Well, um, we've this has been incredible. We've really appreciated your time, and I was a little really looking forward to getting you on as a guest. So we have two conditions. We have a guest on the show. Number one is that down the road, we want to have you back. Want to hear what the Lord's doing in your life, we want to up hear the updates on your journey. So um, we'd love to have you back on the show at some point in time. And the second condition is that we get to pray for you at the end. So why don't we do that right now? So, Father, we just thank you for Zion. Thank you for his story. We thank you for the journey that uh he's walked along the way. We thank you for the people he's encountered that have picked him up when he's down, the people that uh he's been able to run alongside, and the people that he's been able to pick up when they're down. So, Lord, may you continue to um use him for your glory, Lord, as he uh submerges himself in scripture, as he surrounds himself with great believers, as he uh continues to care for others, as he continues to be a great man of God and lean into his identity and continues to dominate on the football field. May he remember to do it all for your glory. So, Lord, we thank you for this podcast. We thank you for those who have listened, and we thank you for the hearts that it's going to touch. We pray these things in Jesus' name.
unknown:Amen.
SPEAKER_00:Amen.
SPEAKER_02:Dave, it's just it's so exciting to see the the zeal and the heart of the young individual, the young athlete. Uh we're we're old enough to be a big brother, we're old enough to be uh some sometimes even a dad to to the young some of these guys, but it's great to see like their heart attitude and see where they're growing.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, and Zion's the guy who doesn't have all the answers, right? He's a guy who's still figuring it out. You talked about being involved in the chapel program, you know, Bible studies within the the Calgary Colts organization. And it's great to see that. That the you know, there are a lot of football teams that have chapel programs, and you obviously hockey, we talked about that on the show. But, you know, a guy who battles worry, right? Shoot, I made this mistake. What do I do? Okay, well, I'm gonna go to the the feet of the the feet of Jesus, I'm gonna go to the cross, and then the Lord is gonna convict me, right? And our pastor recently talked about the difference between being convicted by the Lord and being accused by the enemy. The enemy reminds you of your mistakes to make you feel bad about yourself. The Lord will convict you because he sees a higher ceiling for your life, he sees the absolute best of who you are. And I think that's so great for Zion because just listening to his interview, you can draw a lot of greatness out of that. But he would also confess there's areas that he could improve. And I think that's just so beautiful.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, and it's a good reminder, the humanity behind it, because you hear him and his voice, and then and and seeing he needs improvement, he even acknowledges that, like you said, but it reminds us as the listener and even us as hosts that we don't have it all together, and and it also reminds us, though, of what we've gone through and the process that God has brought us through to bring us where we are at.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, and that's that can mean being connected to to the body of Christ. So there are other people around you. You might feel like you're a bit of a lone wolf. Maybe you feel like you're navigating this on your own, you don't have a community. I would I would encourage you to connect and find community. Maybe that might be a chapel program, maybe that might be just reaching out to a friend and saying, hey, you know what? I'm I'm not good in this area. Can I talk to you about this? Can I share something? Maybe that might mean getting connected to a church, but trying not to do it alone, right? This could be a first step for you hearing this and going, you know what, I'm struggling. It might be time to open up to somebody about this struggle.
SPEAKER_02:And our last um, our last podcast with Gary, um, just it was a good reminder too, with that, how important it is that you you are you are an individual. You have purpose, you have an identity. Your sport is not what defines you. And I think this has been a good season. Hearing from young athletes, old athletes, Olympians, uh, football, baseball, lots of different people from a lot of different places makes me really excited for the next season that's ahead and to see what God has in store for us.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, and believe that's already the end of season two. We enjoyed season one. It had a different feel to it than season two. Season three, we'll continue to pray and seek the Lord's heart in that, but we'll take a brief pause and and uh prepare for season three. So wow, what a great line of guests! Been some great content. If there's something that you loved, something that you want to see more of, you can reach out to us, contact us, we'd love to hear from you, love to know where you're listening from. Uh, the analytics continue to grow. We continue to see numbers all across the world. So you can uh download us where all podcasts are found, like, subscribe, and connect with us on Instagram as well. Thanks so much for listening to this episode. And thank you for taking part in season two of the gospel the game.
SPEAKER_00:If you've been listening to another episode of the Gospel in the Game, look at it. We'd love to hear from you. It is listeners to benefit from your feet.
