Swift Current's Owen Sletten is about to experience what Friday Night Lights is all about.
He has transferred from the Swift Current Comprehensive High School to the United States to play football for Yelm High School in Washington State.
"The recruiting and just a way better football atmosphere," Sletten said. "Nothing is the same about Canadian and American high school football. It's two massively different games."
He is hopeful the extra spotlight on high school football in the US will lead to additional opportunities in the NCAA.
"At our games, we have around 4000 fans watching," Sletten said. "There's a lot more people that are being placed in universities. We play four-star Washington State commits and Boise State commits every week. There will be a lot more scouts watching our games, and that's just opening up doorways for me."
He isn't overly concerned about transitioning from Canadian to American style football.
"So far it's not as hard as I thought," Sletten said. "We've done team camps, and we've beaten teams that are ranked higher than us. I think I'll have a pretty successful season."
The systems they play suit what he feels he brings to the table.
"We run like a spread offence, so we have five receivers," Sletten said. "It suits my game because I'm more of a pocket passer. We have lots of plays where I can just go out there and sling touchdowns."
The Swift Current product is already comfortable with his new home in Yelm for next season.
"It's a great town," Sletten said. "There's only about 10,000 people, but the community is great. Yelm is such a sports city. It's a great atmosphere to be in."
While he is focused on accelerating his career, Sletten does appreciate the time he had playing with the Swift Current Comp Colts.
"It was nice while it lasted," he said. "I had lots of great friends growing up. I just needed to take a step up."
Sletten added he has received one college offer so far, but he is still aiming to earn a bigger opportunity.