Hark, the herald angels sing a second time for B.C. Lions kicker Sean Whyte

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It was when Sean Whyte walked into the Edmonton locker-room midway through the 2015 season that he first heard it.

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Michael Reilly was a few months out from being named Grey Cup MVP, Derel Walker was tearing up the league as a rookie and Dexter McCoil was dominating on defence. And the team was just as good on the field as off.

“It was just a choir of angels when I walked in,” Whyte said. “And it was just like, ‘This is a team. This is what it’s supposed to be like.’ We won together. We went out together. We did everything together.”

Flash-forward seven years, and Whyte is walking through the B.C. Lions’ facility — accompanied by his ever-present dog Tucker — having just signed as a free agent. He spots a large group of players on the practice field, working, sweating, laughing … and it’s only the first week of February.

NEXT GAME

Thursday

Hamilton Tiger-Cats (1-4) vs. B.C. Lions (3-1)

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7 p.m., B.C. Place. TV: TSN/ESPN+. Radio: AM730, Sirius XM 167

Those angels, and their heavenly voices, started singing again.

“I’ve said it from the very beginning. This team is special,” said Whyte.

The Lions are 3-1, their perfect start hitting a Grey Cup-champion-sized speed bump in their road back to respectability and relevance against Winnipeg last game out, but the holy choir is still in full throat in Whyte’s head. Everything isn’t awesome, but it’s just about perfect.

“Those teams that battle go through adversity … they know how to win together, battle and come back together,” said Whyte. “In my mind, that last game against Winnipeg, — obviously I want to win — but if the team had to overcome some adversity now at this point in the season, great. We’re a tight-knit group. I’m not worried about that loss at all. I think it was a great learning lesson for me and for the rest of the team.

“We’re not gonna go and blow everybody out. We could. We definitely could. We have the capability. But we’ve got to understand there’s gonna be some adversity and … great teams have to experience that. We’ve got to learn how to lose together before you win together.

“No one’s in panic. I thought what T.J. (Lee) said was great,” he said of the aftermath of the 43-22 loss. “He’s like, ‘Guys, great teams stay together. This is the test right here. It’s easy to have each other’s back when we’re winning, but when we’re losing, this is the test.’ And not one guy flinched. Everyone was, ‘Hell yeah!’ Like, we were all ready to go back to work. The next day, this gym was packed full of dudes working out.”

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There were no angels singing for B.C. in the 2021 season. There was more of a hint of sulphur and brimstone in the air as the team lost close game after close game, and a hex seemed to be cast upon the revolving door of placekickers. Takeru Yamasaki, Jimmy Camacho and Nick Vogel all had their shots, and shanked them wide right, left or short.

It made Whyte the first signing the Lions made in free agency — they had wooed him relentlessly in the legal tampering period — because of his 86.8 career kicking percentage. Through four games, Whyte has gone a perfect 19-of-19 on his converts — more attempts than any other player in the league. It’s a product of the big-strike Lions offence, which also means fewer field goals — though Whyte’s connected on all six of those, which is six fewer than the next closest kicker. Saskatchewan’s Brett Lauther leads the CFL with 22 attempts for comparison.

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“Well, I’ve only had six field goals, and I’m pretty sure my mother (Pat) could have made all of those,” joked Whyte, whose season-long is 50.

He says he’s not a statistics guy, but he does know the value of a PAT.

“I treat those just like every other field goal … If you’re a good team, you’re gonna barely win some of these games — so those single points are so important. I take them very seriously,” he said.

“My warm-up kicks start at the 32 yard line. So I feel like I should be pretty money, plus I get to put the ball in my favourite spot. I take pride in those kicks and those are very missable kicks — especially when the pressure’s on.”

It’s the same mindset he has in the team golf outings, as he tries to keep fullback Davie Mackie from taking his title of the team’s best golfer.

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“(Kicking and golf), it’s identical. You swing to one o’clock, that’s your power spot. Keep your head down, follow through,” he said. “My two reminders before I kick … head down, swing easy, be smooth.

“So, same thing as golf. Pick your head up, you’re gonna lose. Pick your swing speed up, you’re gonna be inconsistent. It’s all that same stuff.”

The decision to return home was an easy one for the White Rock native. When COVID-19 wiped out the 2020 season, he had to stare into the abyss, contemplating life without football. His dad Tom was a Delta firefighter for decades, as was his uncle. The next step was obvious.

“My dad is ultimately my hero. But don’t tell him that,” he said, smiling. “I have always wanted to be a firefighter; that was my dream. Second would have been an athlete.”

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He “knocked out” eight or nine certificates, training on rope and river rescues. On Tuesday, he was training by the curling rink he used to work in as an ice attendant, in Ruth Johnson Park. His girlfriend was watching him from the deck as he trained in the ravine where he walks Tucker every day. The goal now is to get into the White Rock firehall as a paid on-call member, so he can play football and continue to build his firefighting resume.

“We were spraying hose in there, and it’s just so much fun. And it’s a great break for my mind away from football,” he said. “In the past … if you missed one kick, it’s so hard to make the next kick, because now you’re like. ‘I missed this, I could be on the street next week.’ And my biggest fear was, ‘What will I do?’ And now I have an idea and I feel like my game is getting better because that stress is out of my mind.”

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