Feltmate has academic, athletic, extracurricular highlights to take from his time at Acadia

By John DeCoste '77

Being a university student and varsity athlete can be very much a juggling act – a delicate balance between academics, athletics and community involvement.

Acadia has had many student-athletes over the past several years who have excelled at all three of these aspects of their university life and experience. We can – and probably should – now add Bailey Feltmate to what is an ever-lengthening list.

After four years at Acadia, Feltmate, a football Axemen linebacker and an all-Canadian multiple times, both academically and athletically, during his Acadia career, has had plenty of highlights from his time in Wolfville that he will remember the rest of his life.

On the academic side, he cites "being an academic all-Canadian and an athletic all-Canadian in the same year" – a distinction he earned in 2017 and has a good chance of reprising this school year.

Athletically, Feltmate was part of two AUFC championship teams, a perennial conference all-star and twice a second-team all-Canadian, and twice was recognized as the AUS Defensive Player of the Year. His athletic highlight, he says, was winning the 2017 Loney Bowl over Saint Mary's in double overtime.

In terms of his extracurricular activity, Feltmate cites his involvement in the Acadia S.M.I.L.E. program as a student director. "Being able to have an impact in the community through the S.M.I.L.E. program and others has been so awesome, and such a great way to help others in need."

Feltmate has fully embraced all three aspects of life as a university student and varsity athlete. He acknowledges, "I love the juggling. I think it has made me the human I am today. Putting in the effort and the hard work pays off in the end. Not just with physical rewards, but with the internal reward of feeling accomplished and as if you have helped someone besides yourself."

Growing up in Moncton, Feltmate admits he was "heavily involved" in minor hockey. At Moncton High, he was involved with both the hockey and volleyball teams.

He has been playing football "for about seven years now. It's crazy to think, looking back on it, because time has flown by through high school and university."

At first, he says, "I was sure I was going to try and go somewhere in hockey, but when football came into my life, that all changed. Whenever I went to practice, I was so happy and thought of it as a sanctuary where I could focus on the moment and let everything around me disappear. I loved playing volleyball and hockey, but it didn't give me the same feeling that football did."

What drew him to Acadia was "the community, the players and the coaching staff. It felt perfect to be in Wolfville. The players were so accepting and willing to tell me about Acadia and what I could expect."

Head coach Jeff Cummins "was real with me and set his expectations right away. I respected that a lot." As for becoming a team leader, "I might have had a positive influence" on other younger players, particularly from Moncton, but "the program itself" likely had a greater impact in that regard.

Feltmate has not only evolved into one of the best linebackers in the AUFC, but he is also generally acknowledged as one of the finest ever to play that position at Acadia.

"Bailey is the best linebacker I've had in 20 years at Acadia. He is smart, always prepared in the film room, and physically. He's fast, quick, good instincts, and great tackler. In my opinion, he is the best inside linebacker in U SPORTS and his video will validate that and his numbers will too.  Bailey is my go-to guy for anything I need the team to do. He is our team leader and a tremendous human being on top of everything he does in the community, on the field, and in the locker room," noted Cummins.

"When I first started playing football, I didn't really understand the position, but as the years went on, I got to further my understanding and appreciate the position much more," said Feltmate.

"I absolutely love the linebacker position, and I'm thankful for people like coach Shad (McLachlan, himself a former all-Canadian linebacker at Acadia) who continue to influence me. I'm just happy to do whatever I can do on the field to help my teammates and win."

When Acadia Athletics recently handed out its annual awards for the 2019-2020 season, Feltmate was the male recipient of the President's Award for all-round student activity that helps change lives. He was also the recipient, last fall, of the AUS Student-Athlete Community Service award for football.

He acknowledged, "it has been a long year, with taking seven courses while trying to maintain athletic excellence. I don't look for recognition, but it's extremely nice to receive it." Receiving the President's Award is "extremely humbling, and to be honest, was extremely unexpected. In my first year (at Acadia), I was very shy. I attempted to get involved, but I was afraid to voice myself."

After the past four years, he is now "confident with who I am, and I feel I can confidently speak my mind about important matters. I'm now extremely outgoing, continue to care for the well-being of others, and make sure people feel cared for and are wanted.

"I most definitely see myself as a better, stronger person than I was four years ago. I couldn't be more thankful for those who have helped bring me to where I am today, and for all they have done to help me excel and improve, not only athletically and academically but as an overall human being."

Feltmate is scheduled to graduate this spring with his degree in kinesiology, though due to the impact of COVID-19, "there will be no official ceremony at this time." He has a year of football eligibility remaining and is currently "up in the air" about the chances of returning for play for the Axemen this fall.

He is eligible for the 2020 Canadian Football League draft, and according to many, has a better than even chance of being drafted. He is "very interested in pursuing a professional (football) career," and his long-term goal is to hopefully "attend medical school or physician assistant school" after that. "They have both been goals of mine, and I intend to reach them both at some point in my life."

The COVID-19 situation "has made for a different way of learning," but Feltmate recently completed his final exam and is waiting to graduate. "I do miss the face-to-face learning, but I think the school system is doing the best they can and I greatly appreciate it. It's something we're all having to get through together, and we'll all get through it on top."

Feltmate has "no regrets whatsoever" with his decision to choose Acadia four years ago. "I love Acadia and I would recommend it to anyone, based on the small community and classroom size and the interactions with all the people in the community. It's one of the best decisions I could have made."