PHOTO CREDIT: Wanda Harron Photography
Sadik Sadik’s touchdown breakdown: Two and two.
Just two games into the 2024 season, the speedy Regina Thunder running back has already reached the end zone four times — twice along the ground and twice through the air.
Unfortunately for Sadik, the Prairie Football Conference does not award style points, because the gains are often as flashy as his name.
“It’s a conversation-starter, for sure,” Sadik says entering Sunday’s home opener against the Winnipeg Rifles (1 p.m., Leibel Field).
“I love it. It’s good to be unique and stand out and have something that’s mine.
“Playing against the other teams, it’s, ‘Sadik Sadik! Why Sadik Sadik?! Sadik Sadik!’ It’s good. I’m glad. I’m very happy to have the name that I have.”
The good feelings extend to being a proud resident of Canada.
Sadik, 22, was born in Accra — the capital of Ghana.
When he was nine, his parents (Aimann and Fawziya) moved the family to Calgary.
Next stop: Regina, where Sadik has resided since halfway through his Grade 4 year.
“It was a very, very, very big change,” Sadik says of immigrating to Canada. “Going from a dry season and a rainy season to four seasons and winter, ohhhh, man.
“It has definitely changed my trajectory in life. When I was home (in West Africa), it was school, school, school, soccer.
“Soccer was the only sport I knew. It was the only thing I was focused on. I had soccer dreams.
“Then we moved here and I was like, ‘Oh … basketball, football and all these other things.’
“It has been a great experience, honestly. I’m very grateful to my parents for giving us the opportunity to come here and just live a better life.”
Sadly, Sadik’s father (Aimann) passed away in May of 2023. He is dearly missed by his wife (Fawziya) and three children (Sadik, Shafiu and Aiya).
“At the end of the day, I just want to make my dad and my family proud — on and, especially, off the field,” says Sadik, who is studying kinesiology at the University of Regina.
“School is a big thing in my family, so I’m just trying to focus on graduating like he wanted and always giving it my all on the field.
“One thing I learned from this is that nothing is guaranteed. I always thought he’d get to see me graduate, but we don’t know what’s planned for us, so you just have to make the most of every opportunity and try to make the best decisions you can.
“Everything is in the hands of God and things will be as they should.”
He certainly made the most of an unexpected opportunity when the gridiron game became an option.
“I started playing football in Grade 10,” recalls Sadik, a graduate of F.W. Johnson Collegiate. “Before that, I was more of a basketball and soccer type of guy.
“I wasn’t really a big football guy. There was too much hitting, which I’m not a big fan of. You get piled on by a bunch of guys, so it wasn’t something I looked at.
“My high school coach, Jason Janssen, saw me playing basketball and he said, ‘How do you feel about football?’ We spoke about it and he told me to come out to spring camp to try it out. I did and I enjoyed it.
“I really liked playing with the boys and all of that. It was a great experience, so I stuck with it.”
After excelling for the Regina Intercollegiate Football League’s Johnson Wildcats, Sadik proceeded to the Thunder, impressed as he was by the head coach.
“Scott MacAulay had been talking to me,” Sadik says. “I knew a bunch of people who had been on the team and they let me know it was a good program and a great place to be.
“The staff, the coaches and the players are all great people. I’m very happy with my choice.”
What’s not to like?
In the season opener, Sadik scored three touchdowns to help the Thunder win 61-14 in Winnipeg. He caught four passes for 121 yards and two touchdowns — on receptions of 65 and 20 yards — and added three carries for 31 yards. One of the rushes produced a two-yard major.
One week later, Sadik rushed 15 times for 194 yards and his fourth TD of the young season.
He enters Sunday’s game with a league-best average of 12.5 yards per carry. As well, he is second in the league in points scored (24) and rushing yards (225), and fourth in receiving yards (126).
“I’m not going to sit here and say this is all me, because it’s not,” he emphasizes, voicing appreciation for his coaches and his teammates. “There’s other stuff that has been done to get to this point.”
At 2-0, the Thunder is tied with the Saskatoon Hilltops for first place.
“I’m very happy with the team right now and the players that we have and the amount of work that we’re putting in, day in and day out,” Sadik says.
“I think that with the guys we have around us, we can take it all the way, as long as we stay focused and we keep putting in the amount of work that we’re putting in.
“Let’s not get off track and start taking random penalties or not going 100 per cent during practice or not watching film. Let’s stay on track with what we’re doing and just keep it up and get better.”
Sadik stays on the track in another respect. In addition to being a proud member of the Thunder, he works out with the U of R Cougars’ track and field team.
“I just practise with them, trying to get my form right and my speed up,” he says.
“Talking to their coaches, it seems like they want me to come back, so we’ll see what’s going to happen after football. Hopefully I get to be an official member of the team.”
One bonus with track and field: No contact!
“My position on that still hasn’t changed,” Sadik says with a laugh. “I’m not a big fan of getting hit. I’d rather run away and try not to get touched at all if I can manage that.
“I’m not scared of it anymore. I can take a hit. I can lay a hit now.”
He can also lay claim to an eye-catching name — something that seems to be trendy, considering the popularity of Saskatchewan Roughriders rookie receiver Ajou Ajou.
“The next thing you know, everybody’s going to have the same first name,” Sadik says. “I like to say I was a pioneer.”
