Meeting Brent Korte: A lesson in being humble

Brent Korte played for the University of Alberta football

team in the '80s, and now helps coach them.

Source: https://bearsandpandas.ca/sports/football

(May be subject to copyright)

In a world where a lot of professional football prospects can be arrogant and think they are above it all, I recall a time in the summer of 1989 where I experienced exactly the opposite.

Recently I was watching a game between Edmonton and Hamilton, and I saw the last name Korte stencilled on the back of one of the Edmonton players.

I wondered if it could be, and the Internet told me it really was.

Mark Korte, an offensive lineman with Edmonton, is the son of Brent Korte.

It brought back all these memories of a game of two-on-two basketball back in the summer of 1989, and a lesson in humility I will never forget.

Shooting hoops
One of the cool things about the University of Alberta campus back in the 1980s was there was no shortage of places to play basketball, be it pick-up, two-on-two, three-on-three, or shooting around. My favourite haunt was the outdoor courts beside the physical education building, in the shadow of the Butterdome. A close second, were the portable baskets inside the Butterdome beside the indoor running track. They allowed us to play basketball even when it was 35 degrees below Celsius outside and the outdoor courts were covered in snow.

In the summer time, it was just as much fun to play at the portable hoops to escape the heat, rain or whatever else the elements presented.

One of the guys I used to play with was my friend James Taylor, who I had played a bunch of intramural basketball with.

He and I would play in one of the most memorable games of my life.

Hoop memories
Taylor and I were shooting around one summer day when these two guys came through the doors and started warming up.

One of them came over, and was really polite.

“You guys wanna play?” he asked.

Taylor nodded he was in and so did I.

The guy looked kind of familiar, but I was not 100 hundred percent sure from where.

“My name is Brent and that’s Jim,” he said. “What’s your name?”

“Rob,” I replied. “And that’s James.”

I asked him where he was from – Peace River – and I told him I was from Coaldale and Taylor was from Winfield.

“Rob and James, pleased to meet you,” he said.

Then it clicked

This was Brent Korte. He was a pass rusher for the U of A Golden Bears football team, and at the time I heard he was definitely going to be drafted by the CFL.

I had seen him play, and he was ferocious on the field. I loved watching him in action.

So, I guarded him and Taylor guarded Jim.

The first time I collided with Brent, I instantly knew he was a professional calibere athlete. He was all muscle. Jim was like that too, when he set a screen and knocked me sideways.

I couldn’t tell you the score, or who won, but I had a lot of fun, because they were really classy guys.

After we finished, Brent asked us what we were studying. We told him we were both in Education, although Taylor was actually done. Brent told us what he had studied and that Jim was finishing his elementary education degree.

I could not resist seeing if Brent was as nice and humble as he appeared.

“How about you?” I asked. “Where are you working next year?”

I didn’t let on that I knew he was a football player.

He just shrugged.

“I have a few resumés out, but nothing definite,” he said.

“Really?” I persisted. “You seem like you’d be good at that.”

He smiled.

“Thank you,” he said.

Then he wished us both luck, shook our hands, and they were gone.

I turned to Taylor and he instantly had identified Brent and Jim. I told Taylor I tried to get him to admit who he was, by asking him where he was working next year, but all he said was he had a few resumés out.

“Ya, in the CFL,” Taylor smiled.

The years after
I heard Brent Korte got drafted by Edmonton, but I never heard too much after that. It turns out he was taken in the fifth round, 37th overall. He went into coaching after playing, but I don’t think he ever suited up in the pros.

Parting thoughts
I will always remember how humble Brent Korte was. Not only did he not throw around the fact he had a shot at playing professional football, but he never even allowed that he played the game.

More than that, he was interested in me and my friend.

That makes him the exact opposite of egotistical and self-centred.

Meeting him really was a lesson in being humble.