Matt Kirk, who had the euphoria of winning a Grey Cup during his CFL tenure, says the uniqueness of playing football for Queen's is unmatched.
 
That hit home for Kirk, a Kingstonian who's now a self-employed builder with his company MK Renovations, when he was inducted into the Queen's Football hall of Fame last month. Kirk was a standout defensive end and tackle from 2001-04 who also had a successful pro career at Ottawa, B.C., and Hamilton, winning a championship with the 2006 Lions.
 
"When you're having fun doing something, you get the most out of yourself," says Kirk, 35, who with his spouse Lauren and their three-year-old son Deacon and six-month-old daughter Myla, reside in a home he built after retiring from the CFL. "I definitely attribute to that the coaches and the program they had in place. They ran a very professional training camp, professional-type practices to get the most of it for sure.
 
"I really feel like Queen's is where I had my most fun as a football player. I guess there was less stress; pro football, there's more stress, it's a job. University football, you work hard all week and you're with the guys and after the game you have some fun. The relationships you make, the memories of being out there at Richardson when it'd start raining and you're all beat up and covered in mud, that's what I remember fondly."
 
Kirk's path to a star turn with the Gaels, which included winning the J.P. Metras Trophy as top CIS lineman in 2003, was rather roundabout. As a teen, he was more intent on chasing pucks than ballcarriers, showing enough promise to be invited to training camp with the Ontario Hockey League's Peterborough Petes. He played more offence than defence as a high school footballer with the La Salle Black Knights, but coach Pat Sheahan and then-defensive coordinator Pat Tracey had the foresight to move him to D.
 
Kirk credits the atmosphere around the program for helping him adapt and thrive.
 
"One of the big things is the Queen's culture – there's so much respect," Kirk says. "Respect for past players and coaches. You see so many guys come back to coach, or just be around the team. It taught me respect for football and respect for other players. Coach Sheahan and Coach Tracey are just top-notch coaches and taught me everything I know, basically."
 
Older players helped foster that learning environment. Kirk broke in with the Gaels two seasons after fellow Class of 2015 inductee Corey Trudeau, who was an undersized defensive tackle, and they started together for three seasons. Kirk credits Trudeau, who passed away in December 2013, for being a role model.
 
"Corey was such a great teammate and a great friend. We spent a few good years together. He taught me how to approach football professionally, I guess. He worked so hard at everything he did. Any time you went to the weight room, he was there. We weight-trained together a lot, even after we were done at Queen's and were both trying out for the CFL. We spent a lot of time together. I miss him a ton. He was the biggest influences on me at Queen's, in terms of a player. It was also cool getting inducted with Jon Landon, since one season [2001] he was switched over to defensive line and [the front four] was Jon, Corey, Andrew Moad and I."
 
After a seven-season playing career with the Renegades, Lions and Tiger-Cats from 2005-11, Kirk discovered his second career quite organically. He spent a year building his home, then parlayed that into a business.
 
"It was always something that I've dabbled in and been interested in," he says. "When I was done playing football I built our house. I enjoyed that and enjoyed the benefits of having your own business, making your own schedule and having more time with my family when I need it.
 
"Being able to come back to Kingston and raise a family, I feel pretty fortunate."
 
Neate Sager (@naitSAYger), Arts '00, writes for Yahoo! Canada (ca.sports.yahoo.com) and other media outlets.