A storm is about to hit Pullman. It approaches quickly from Milpitas, Calif., and when it arrives, the conditions are expected to be squally. 

Squally Canada, a 5-foot-11-inch running back recruited by the WSU Cougars for the upcoming football season, has grown up producing wind with the speed of his legs. However, that is perhaps more fitting than some might realize. 

The running back’s name, Squally, originates from the windy conditions it describes, and in fact its roots are from the tree outside his childhood home.

Squally’s father, Byron, said when Squally was a baby, Squally’s mom would sit their son by the window of their house whenever he would cry. Hearing the wind blowing outside and seeing the tree moving outside the window would comfort Squally. 

One day, Byron decided he would give his son a nickname and called him Boosqually. Eventually, his parents dropped the “Boo.”

To this day, Squally has other names that he uses as alternate egos on his Twitter account. He described two other names, Johnny Heart and Joey Simp, as representations of different personas Squally uses at various times of his life. 

One day, Squally and his friends were hanging out and Squally dreamt up his first alter ego because he thought Johnny Heart sounded like an awesome name to have. Heart is a relationship-type of guy who is a true sweetheart, Squally said. 

On the other hand, Joey Simp is the alter ego who just got out of a relationship and is down on his luck and doesn’t prefer to talk to anybody. Most often though, Squally is Squally, and that personality is the one who is always happy and in a state of euphoria. 

“During football season, it’s Squally Canada, and that’s a great person,” he said. 

Squally has always been a playful person and has become the jokester of the family through the years. Among the many things Squally has done to draw some laughs, one April Fools’ Day prank stood out in Byron’s mind. 

Byron was working in southern California during the time of April Fools’ Day, and Squally and his siblings wanted to find a way to fool their dad. The first idea was to tell Byron that his wife had wrecked the car, but Squally said that wasn’t good enough because the car is a material item, and therefore is replaceable. 

They decided to call and tell Byron that Squally had been kicked out of school and put into continuation school. Byron said he almost came through the phone in frustration but then he got another call saying that it was just an April Fools’ Day joke, which he admitted was a good one. 

Despite his jokes, Squally made himself a serious candidate to play college football at an early age. Soon after Squally was born, his mom bought him a football that he kept with him at all times. As he got older, Squally became more capable of holding on to that football, and Byron said he carried it everywhere. 

His dad also started him doing pushups at a young age, and by the time he was 5 years old, he was big enough for his dad to try to put him on a football team. 

However, coaches told Squally he could not play in tackle football leagues until he was 7. Squally played flag football for two years, but once he qualified to play tackle football, the worst happened. 

In the first game Squally played, he got hit so hard on a kickoff return that his dad ran out of the stands to see if his son was all right. When Squally got up, Byron said he told his son that if he ever got hit like that again, he could forget about playing football again. That hit sent Squally the message that his dad had been trying to teach him ever since those pushup workouts during his youth. 

“I knew that playing the game of football was going to be taxing on his body and his mind,” Byron said. “I started him off early with being mentally tough.”

The efforts Byron put in to helping his son grow physically and mentally have not been in vain. Squally said his dad has influenced him the most in his life, and the two have grown very close during his high school career. When the two work out together, they talk about various life situations, God and girls, Squally said. Those conversations have given him one concern for leaving home and going to college. 

“I’m very independent on my own, even at home. I spend a lot of time alone working out,” Squally said. “But I’m always worried about leaving my Pops, my dad because we spend a lot of time with each other, and he got me to where I am.”

Squally became a running back at age 8, but at that time his teammates were older and faster than him. One of his coaches told Byron that Squally should run track in order to improve his speed enough to keep up with the toss plays in the playbook. 

Although Squally did not want to run track, his parents told him that he needed to do what they told him until he turned 18. Consequently, he ran track and the following year, he ran for 32 touchdowns and more than 2,000 yards. 

In high school, Squally continued to light up the statistics sheet. He broke the Milpitas High School all-time single-season rushing record with 1,916 yards and 24 touchdowns. His high school coach, Kelly King, said Squally showed signs that he would play college football as early as his freshman year. Squally played all four years at the varsity level. 

“What set him apart was his great determination and will to win,” King said. “He played varsity football for four years, and by the time he was a senior, when you’re playing at a level for four years, you kind of start to dominate at that level. Plus he’s a great player.”

Squally said he always heard his father tell him that in order to be successful he would have to work hard. That hard work has led Squally to become the first in his family to attend a Division I college. 

The most important objective in life for Squally’s parents was to do everything they could to allow their son to go to a Division I school, Byron said. 

“My motto is that for each generation, there should be a progression,” Byron said. “Growing up, I didn’t have the opportunity to see my father or be raised in a household with two parents, so I made it a point that I would be there in my son’s life and make sure that he had the things in place that I did not have in place.”

Now that he is at WSU, Squally plans to bring his versatility to the football team and expects to make the most out of every opportunity he has on the field. 

Squally Canada will get the opportunity to take Pullman by storm when he arrives on campus for the fall semester. Upon his arrival, he will get the chance to fulfill the progression of his generation in the Canada family.