Hilltops defence delivers in crunch time

Hilltops LB Bobby Ehman grabs Thunder RB Victor St. Pierre-Laviolette.

    The Saskatoon Hilltops defence always seems to deliver in the clutch.

    On Saturday at Saskatoon Minor Football Field, the Hilltops defence delivered two key stops inside of the final two minutes to preserve a 20-18 victory over their provincial rivals the Regina Thunder. The stops came right after Thunder quarterback Sawyer Buettner hit fifth-year receiver Kasim Ocaya on a 14-yard touchdown strike to cut Saskatoon’s edge to two points with 2:03 to play.

    Following that major score, the Thunder got two more possessions to try and move into range for a winning field goal. 

    On the first of those final two possessions, defensive end Blake Hermann came through with a key pass knock down, and the Hilltops forced a fumble a short time later that was recovered by rookie defensive back Leif Larson. Larson had two fumble recoveries on the night for Saskatoon.

Cameron Schnitzler, right, topped the Hilltops with 12 tackles.

    The Hilltops weren’t able to move the ball, which allowed the Thunder to have one last possession with under 40 seconds to play.

    Second-year defensive tackle Tristan Hering proceeded to step up and deliver a blow that pretty much sealed the final outcome for the Hilltops. On a middle rush, Hering managed to knock the ball out of Buettner’s grasp. 

    The ball was recovered by Thunder offensive lineman Brayden Moroz, who chugged downfield before being brought down by a pair of Hilltops in middle linebacker Cameron Schnitzler and defensive lineman Tom Schnitzler.

    The play ate up most of the time the Thunder had to use on the clock forcing them to one last desperate play. On the last play of the game, the visitors attempted a quick kick from running back Quinten Ruckaber, but it wasn’t able to create a winning score.

Tom Schnitzler (#56) deflects a Sawyer Buettner (#14) pass.

    Under defensive coordinator Jeff Yausie, the Hilltops defence usually follows a “bend but don’t break” approach. Saskatoon’s defence will give up yards, but always seems to come out with a decided edge in the turnover department.

    Regina out gained Saskatoon in net offensive yards 522 to 418, but the Hilltops defence came up with four takeaways, while the Thunder defence had one takeaway.

    Buettner had a spectacular outing for the visitors connecting on 43-of-52 passes for 422 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. The second-year signal caller wasn’t able to hit any real big plays as his longest completion was 23 yards.

    The Hilltops held the Thunder to 78 yards rushing as a team, which included holding standout running back Victor St. Pierre-Laviolette to 59 yards on 14 carries.

    The Schnitzlers both had huge days for the Hilltops. Cameron topped the team with 12 tackles, while Tom had 10 tackles.

    Regina took an 8-0 lead in the first quarter of Saturday’s battle. Buettner hit receiver Kristiane Desautels for a 20-yard touchdown pass, and kicker James Reid recorded a single on a 27-yard missed field goal.

Logan Fischer piled up 134 yards rushing on 18 carries for the Hilltops.

    In the second quarter, Hilltops offensive lineman Drayke Unger punched in a one-yard touchdown run taking a carry as a fullback to cut the Thunder lead to 8-7. Hilltops safety James Vause booted a 30-yard field goal with 2.2 seconds to play in the first half to give Saskatoon a 10-8 lead.

    The Thunder jumped ahead 11-10 in the third quarter, when Reid nailed a 34-yard field goal. Before the frame ended, the Hilltops jumped back out in front 17-11 on a one-yard touchdown plunge by running back Logan Fischer.

    Fischer piled up 134 yards rushing on 18 carries and caught two passes for 26 yards.

    Early in the fourth quarter, the Thunder gambled on a third and goal from the Saskatoon five yard line in an attempt to retake the lead. Buettner tried to hit Ocaya, but the pass fell incomplete due to tight coverage by Hilltops defensive back Luke Melnyk.

    Vause hit a 34-yard field goal to increase Saskatoon’s lead to 20-11 before the Thunder made their last push inside of the final three minutes.

Thunder QB Sawyer Buettner is pressured by Hilltops DE Blake Hermann

    Hilltops quarterback Jared Andreychuk completed 13-of-20 passes for 174 yards, no touchdowns and one interception.

    With the win, the Hilltops improved to 4-1 to sit second in the Prairie Football Conference, while the Thunder fell to 3-2.  The Hilltops return to action this coming Saturday, when they travel to Kelowna, B.C., to take on the Okanagan Sun in rematch of last year’s Canadian Bowl. Saskatoon took that encounter 38-24.

    The Sun fell to 6-1 dropping a 29-23 decision to the Westshore Rebels on Saturday in Langford, B.C.

    The Thunder take on the PFC leading Calgary Colts (4-0) this coming Saturday in a neutral site game in Medicine Hat, Alta.

    If you have any comments you would like to pass on about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

Siemens is top football dog

Huskies make right move in going with third-year pivot

Kyle Siemens stays cool in the pocket for the Huskies.

    Kyle Siemens was the obvious choice to lead the University of Saskatchewan Huskies football team as the starting quarterback, which should come as no surprise seeing his short sampling of work on the field.

    Going into this Canadian Interuniversity Sport season, Siemens, who is in his third year of eligibility, was in a battle for the Huskies starting quarterback position with fifth-year veteran Drew Burko. Both happen to be graduates of Saskatoon’s Aden Bowman Collegiate in Saskatoon.

    Burko was the starting pivot from 2012 to the Huskies sixth regular season outing in the 2015 campaign.

    Sitting at 2-4 last season, the Dogs needed a spark to make a playoff push. In went Siemens for the second last regular season game, and he proceeded to push the Huskies into the post-season going 1-1 in his two starts. The wins gave the Dogs a 3-5 regular season mark.
    U of S fell in a Canada West quarter-final playoff contest 37-29 in Calgary to the University of Calgary Dinos.

    In the Huskies regular season opener last Friday, Siemens had a strong outing completing 28-of-42 passes for 338 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions in a thrilling 41-39 overtime victory over the University of Regina Rams. He also rose up in one big key moment before a packed crowd of 7,735 spectators at Griffiths Stadium, which showed why he had to handle the starting reins.

    The Rams had scored a touchdown and added a two-point convert to go up 31-28 with 1:36 to play in the fourth quarter.

    On the ensuing U of S series, the Huskies were at their own 20 yard line facing a third and 20. The situation favoured the defence, and the Huskies needed a big play to avoid bowing out in defeat.

    Siemens proceeded to hook up with receiver Yol Piok on a deep throw to pick up 35 yards and get the Huskies to midfield. The game’s momentum changed, and Siemens guided the Huskies into position to hit a short 20-yard field goal to tie things up at 31-31 and send the contest to overtime.

Kyle Siemens fires a pass downfield for the Huskies.

    As an encore, the Rams would go up 38-31 getting a touchdown in their first possession of the shootout overtime format, and Siemens came back hitting Colton Klassen with a 29-yard TD toss to tie things up at 38-38.

    The Rams proceeded to get a single from a missed field goal on their second OT possession to go up 39-38, and Huskies kicker Sean Stenger followed with a short 10-yard field goal to give his side a 41-39 win.

    Under Burko in 2015, the Huskies didn’t make enough key plays like the ones Siemens did inside the final 90 seconds of the fourth quarter and in overtime on Friday. In the always tough Canada West conference, making those types of plays separates good teams from average teams and great teams from good ones.

    The other thing that hurt Burko was the fact he got in a rut last season of turning the ball over. In 2015, Burko completed 117 of 206 passes for 1,725 yards, nine touchdowns and nine interceptions. He threw a combined five pics in back-to-back blowout losses to the Dinos, where the Huskies were outscored 103-34 and dropped to 2-4.

    When Siemens came in, he did a better job at taking care of the ball, which drastically improved the Huskies chances to win. In his first start last season, Siemens completed 44-of-67 passes for 520 yards, three touchdowns and one interception in a 41-36 loss at Griffiths Stadium to the eventual Vanier Cup champion University of British Columbia Thunderbirds. The 44 completions were a single game Huskies record.

    Needed a win on the road in Regina against the Rams to make playoffs, Siemens rallied the Huskies from a 34-11 late third quarter deficit to pull out a 38-37 win. He completed 23-of-41 passes for 422 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions in that contest.

    In the playoffs, Siemens had the Dogs up 22-19 early in the fourth quarter against the Dinos, before the Dinos pulled out a 37-29 victory. Siemens completed 29-of-46 passes for 356 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions in that loss.

Kyle Siemens calls a play in the huddle for the Huskies.

    With the way Siemens finished the 2015 campaign, it was going to be hard not to name him the starter. He gives the Huskies their best chance to win.

    Burko did have a longer sampling as a starter. From a physical stature, he has all the tools you look for in a quarterback standing 6-foot-4, weighing 225 pounds and having a gun of an arm.

    Siemens stands 5-foot-10 and weighs 195 pounds and has a stature more comparable to CFL legend Doug Flutie. Like Flutie, Siemens isn’t your sexy pick to be quarterback, but also like Flutie, Siemens makes plays.

    Veteran Huskies head coach Brian Towriss and his staff know they have to make tough the decisions to help their team win, and this was one of them.

    Now it is up to Siemens to continue his magic this coming Friday on the road, when the Huskies travel to Edmonton to face the University of Alberta Golden Bears (0-1), who have a habit of playing the Dogs tough.

Thunder have hit at Leibel Field

Over 1,500 spectators packed Leibel Field in Regina to watch the Thunder.

    The Canadian Junior Football League’s Regina Thunder might have discovered that bigger isn’t always better.

    On Saturday, the Thunder packed over 1,500 fans into the cozy confines of Leibel Field to watch the host side post a 43-29 victory over the Winnipeg Rifles. For the Thunder’s hometown players, the move was a return to the roots type one.

    Leibel Field is home to a large majority of Regina’s minor football games. A lot of the Thunder’s Regina born players likely got their first taste of the tackled game at the park suiting up at age eight.

    The facility is also home to a number of clashes for the city’s various men’s and women’s touch and flag leagues.

    Leibel Field was renovated a few years back, which allowed the Thunder to experiment with the concept of playing there.

Tailback Victor St. Pierre-Laviolette tears downfield for the Thunder.

    Normally, the Thunder play at Mosaic Stadium, which is home to the CFL’s Saskatchewan Roughriders. The Thunder usually draws crowds of around 1,000, which look very spread out at Mosaic Stadium, which can seat over 33,000.

    At Leibel Field, it felt like the Thunder game had a better atmosphere, as there were no empty seats in the bleachers. The beer garden was a little small, but it was equipped with a big flat screen television, which allowed spectators to keep track of what was going on out on the field.

    Overall, the Thunder had a big hit with the concept of going to a smaller park. Hopefully, they will keep coming back to this novelty in the future.

    If they even just had one game a year at Leibel Field per season, it would be a good thing.  

Hilltops back on track

Joshua Ewanchyna piled up 178 yards rushing.

    As expected, the venerable Saskatoon Hilltops earned their big bounce back victory, and they got big contributions from a couple of youngsters.

    On Sunday, the Hilltops traveled to Edmonton and flattened the Wildcats 53-16 in CJFL action to improve to 3-1. The Wildcats fell to 0-4.
    Before downing the Wildcats, the Hilltops dropped a 36-21 decision to the Calgary Colts at Saskatoon Minor Football Field on Aug. 28.

    In the win over the Wildcats, rookie tailback Joshua Ewanchyna piled up 178 yards rushing on 18 carries and scored three touchdowns. Second-year running back Adam Machart picked up 118 yards rushing on 17 carries and one major.

    Fifth-year veteran quarterback Jared Andreychuk connected on 13-of-18 passes for 244 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. Receiver Jason Price hauled in six passes for 125 yards and two touchdowns.

    Defensive back Logan Bitz topped the Toppers with seven tackles, while safety James Vause had an interception and a fumble recovery.

    On Saturday, the Hilltops return to action with a key battle against the Regina Thunder (3-1) at 7 p.m. at SMF Field. Both teams are chasing the Colts (4-0) for first in the Prairie Football Conference.
    Before tangling with the Thunders, the Hilltops are hosting their Potashcorp Scholarship Dinner at SMF Field. Gates open at 4:15 p.m. and dinner follows at 5:15 p.m. with Saskatchewan Roughriders great George Reed as the guest speaker and a pre-game address by Hilltops head coach Tom Sargeant. Tickets can be purchased by clicking here.

    Following Saturday’s game, the Hilltops play three of their final four games on the road. That stretch includes traveling to Kelowna, B.C., on Sept. 17 for a clash that counts in the regular season standings with the Okanagan Sun, who the Hilltops beat 38-24 in last year’s Canadian Bowl. The Sun currently top the British Columbia Football Conference with a 6-0 mark.

Blades announce more Howe day details

The Gordie Howe statue in front of the SaskTel Centre.

    During a press conference on Tuesday, the Saskatoon Blades announced more details of their “Thank You, Mr. Hockey” day.

    Before their regular season home opener on Sept. 25 against the Swift Current Broncos, the Blades will honour one of the greatest hockey players of all-time in the late Gordie Howe. Howe passed away on June 10 at age 88.

    Hockey Night in Canada broadcasting legend Bob Cole will serve as host of a special 25-minute pre-game ceremony, which is slated to begin at 2 p.m. The Blades will wear special Howe themed jerseys for the contest and stickers on their helmets bearing Howe’s signature.

    The Blades are also bringing in trophies Howe won from the Hockey Hall of Fame to be put on display. The first 6,000 people inside the rink will get special Howe themed items.

    The day begins with a private ceremony at the Howe statue outside the SaskTel Centre for his family at 9:30 a.m. The cremated remains of Gordie and his wife Colleen Howe will be interred at the statue. City officials and the provincial government pushed through special approval to allow the statue to serve as a cemetery.

    After the ceremony, the Howe family will make their way to the newly built Circle Drive South Bridge, which is being named the Gordie Howe Bridge.

    All four of Gordie and Colleen’s children will be in the city for all the day’s activities.

    Blades president Steve Hogle has and is working extremely hard to pull the special events on this day together. This will definitely be the must-see Blades game of the year.

    If you have any comments you would like to make about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

Labour Day Classic in Regina a hit on social front

Bombers fans relish first victory since 2004

The Bombers are greeted by a mass of their faithful on the way to their bus.

    REGINA - Wow, it seems it takes longer to recover from the festivities of the Labour Day Classic weekend the older you get, but I know for myself I wouldn’t have it any other way.

    It is now two days after the Winnipeg Blue Bombers slipped past the Saskatchewan Roughriders 28-25 on a last play field goal by Justin Medlock in the annual clash of the two prairie rivals before a sellout crowd of 33,427 at old Mosaic Stadium in Regina. On this back to work Tuesday following the long weekend, a lot of people will still be talking about this clash during breaks and around the water cooler in Saskatchewan and Manitoba.

    Regardless of who wins, this game and weekend is always a victory for the fans. This is the best weekend on the CFL calendar to be a fan. I have worked the Labour Day Classic on a couple of occasions, which was great, but I definitely prefer being a straight fan on this weekend.

Bombers and Roughriders fans have some fun at “Wayne's World.”

    One of the best things of this annual affair is the chance for fans of both the Roughriders and Bombers to get out and socialize. When you are out at the lounges or nightclubs or even the beautiful park area around Wascana Lake in Regina, the majority of both sets of fans realize they aren’t that different when it comes to supporting their teams. They respect each other for the passion they have for their clubs.

    I know on Saturday night a few shots went down respecting that fact along with getting in on toast to the memory of the late legendary Bombers head coach and general manager and also former Roughriders coach Cal Murphy.

    In the immediate aftermath of the game, there were a small minority of Saskatchewan fans that viewed their displeasure about how the contest ended due to the fact the winning field goal was set up by a questionable pass interference call on Roughriders defensive back Justin Cox.

Weston Dressler always has time for the fans.

    Being a fan on the Roughriders side, I was disappointed as well, and I thought that call was blown. With that said, I am have seen my share of Roughriders losses, so I am mature enough to the point they don’t really affect me.

    I appreciate any chance I have to get out to a CFL game, especially the Labour Day Classic. For me, this was the 16^th time I was at the annual affair between the Roughriders and Bombers, and Saskatchewan holds a 14-2 edge in those battles.

    This may sound strange, but I kind of enjoyed watching the Bombers fans celebrate their team’s win. A large group of regulars annually make the trip out from Winnipeg, and they are a great bunch.

When the Bombers won, they weren’t really rubbing the fact into the faces of the Roughriders supporters. The Bombers fans were in a state of joyful disbelief.

    One Winnipeg fan came up to me and said this was his 12^th Labour Day Classic, and he had attended all of the previous 11 games that the Bombers had lost in a row. He was just so overjoyed his team won.

    The Winnipeg celebrations drifted out to “Wayne’s World,” which is the back yard of a house that is across and alley neighbouring the West Side of Mosaic Stadium.
    The Bombers supporters then drifted over to the team bus, where the players went through high-fiving and posing for selfie pictures with the huge gathering of their faithful as echoes of “Here we go Bombers, here we go!” filled the air.

I made some new friends at the Labour Day Classic.

    The scene reminded me of following the Roughriders out on the road to Calgary, and the same scene basically repeated itself outside of McMahon Stadium after a Saskatchewan victory.

    This past Sunday, the Bombers fans were enjoyed their day in the sun along with five straight wins as they should be. 

    I am old enough to know that days in the sun like this always seen to pass by way too quick, so you should absolutely soak them in while you can.

    If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

Bomber fans help make Labour Day Classic go round

Bomber fans gather at “Wayne's World” in 2012.

    While it might seem strange to say, the annual Labour Day Classic in Regina isn’t under the soul ownership of Rider Nation.

    The fans of the Saskatchewan Roughriders are the heart of the CFL, but every year on Labour Day weekend their ranks at Mosaic Stadium/Taylor Field get infiltrated by a healthy contingent wearing blue and gold. At one time, it seemed to the locals like a group of aliens dropped into “the Queen City,” when supporters of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers – the Roughriders forever prairie rivals – drop into town.

    Bomber fans have descended on Regina for decades for the annual clash with the host Roughriders. The fact that the Winnipeg side hasn’t won this game since 2004 doesn’t seem to matter for the Bombers faithful.
    Back in 2004, Jon Ryan, who is now special teams captain for the NFL’s Seattle Seahawks, was coffin cornering punts out at the opposition’s one yard line as a rookie pro for the Bombers, when they took the Labour Day Classic 17-4.

    The Winnipeg fans are in town to have a good time. You can also bet the good times this weekend will start way before Sunday’s 1 p.m. local time kickoff. Bomber fans will no doubt start filtering into Regina on Friday night and begin frequenting the various lounges and nightclubs.

Bomber fans tailgate before the 2009 Labour Day Classic.

    Roughriders fans have long has a reputation for being wild, crazy and loyal, which often includes arriving at games in various types of team attire.

    If you had the chance to talk to the late Cal Murphy, who was a legendary head coach and general manager of the Bombers, or former Bombers star running back Willard Reaves, they will tell you Bomber fans can be just as wild, crazy and loyal as Roughriders fans are. They would suggest checking out the crowd shots of the Bombers 47-17 Grey Cup win over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in 1984 in Edmonton to support that point.

    You wouldn’t have to look at old footage to see that is true this weekend. All you have to do is checkout the sizable pockets of blue and gold mixed in among the green and white in Regina.

Bomber fans get pumped up outside of “Wayne's World” in 2008.

    During game day, Bomber fans often rally pre-game at “Wayne’s World,” which is the back yard of a house that is across an alley neighbouring the west side of Mosaic Stadium. This will often mark the largest gathering for the visiting fans.

    The presence of the Winnipeg fans has been a long accepted fact at the Labour Day Classic. The influx of Bombers supporters usually includes a healthy group of regulars that make their way to Regina year after year. A few even bring their own barbecues for the pre-game tailgate party.

    The interaction between the fan bases is traditionally quite friendly. Both sides get in good-natured jibes towards each other, but they also enjoy partying together in the two days leading up to the game and the night after the game.

Bombers and Riders fans can get along at the Labour Day Classic.

    Those that are at the Labour Day Classic on an annual basis begin to know the regulars at least by face. A mutual respect is shown towards the passion each side displays for their teams.

    Sometimes, even relationships that include benefits develop for the weekend between fans from the opposite sides, which can add another layer of interesting memories for the Labour Day Classic weekend. Along the way, that also gives new meaning to the phrase, “Make love, not war.”

    The Bomber fans that trek to Regina are ardent ones. You can see that by the different Bombers jerseys that come out. There is a good dose of Milt Stegall jerseys with Stegall having built his legend playing in Winnipeg from 1995 to 2008.

    Young fans in their late teens and early 20s will often sport jerseys of Bombers stars from their Grey Cup wins in 1984, 88 and 90. Former receiver Joe Poplawski is a common one along with former league MVP quarterback Tom Clements and Reaves. In recent years, more Bombers fans have been spotted wearing the uniform of the club’s late linebacking great in Tyrone Jones.

A Bomber fan dresses up as “The Golden Boy.”

    When Cal Murphy was scouting for the NFL’s Indianapolis Colts in the 2000s, Bomber fans often recognized him outside Mosaic Stadium and said, “Do you know who that is? That’s Cal Murphy. When he coached and ran the Bombers, we were great.”

    Murphy often chatted with Bombers supporters, which included posing in a picture with them while giving his gleeful trademark cackle.

    After Murphy passed away at age 79 on Feb. 18, 2012, you will usually find some Bombers fans holding a toast in his honour during the Labour Day Classic weekend.

    The atmosphere at the Labour Day Classic in Regina wouldn’t be complete without the presence of the Winnipeg fans. This one will have a little special extra meaning, because it will be the last one held at the Roughriders long-time home park.

    When the annual clash moves to New Mosaic Stadium next year, you can be sure the healthy loyal contingent of Bombers fans will be back to help keep the party going.

    If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

Rams/Huskies clash nears sellout at new Mosaic

Noah Picton fires a pass downfield for the Rams.

    If you want to go to the first football game at the new Mosaic Stadium in Regina, you are going to have to act fast.

    The first contest at what will be best known as the new home of the CFL’s Saskatchewan Roughriders will be a Canadian Interuniversity Sport football clash between the University of Regina Rams and the University of Saskatchewan Huskies on Oct. 1 at 2 p.m. The battle between these provincial rivals is being dubbed “the SaskTel Fall Classic,” because SaskTel jumped in as a major sponsor.

    Individual tickets went on sale July 26 and were available through the websites and ticket offices of both the Rams and the Roughriders as well as through Ticketmaster’s site.

    On Friday, the Roughriders ticketing team sent out an email saying 85 per cent of the tickets for this contest have been sold. As this battle between the Rams and Huskies will be the first test event for new Mosaic Stadium, capacity has been set at 16,500. New Mosaic Stadium will have a standard capacity of 33,000, when it is fully operational.

    Almost a month ago in this blog, I expressed doubts that this game would sellout. Both the Rams and Huskies have had numerous promotions in the past to get past 10,000 in attendance for a game since the Rams joined the CIS ranks in 1999 but have come up unsuccessful.

    The fact 85 per cent of the tickets have already been sold means a huge congratulations has to be passed on to those involved. That means just over 14,000 people have tickets for this regular season contest.

    Since 1999, the biggest crowd for a university level football game in Saskatchewan has been hosted by the Huskies, who crammed 12,567 spectators into Griffiths Stadium for the 2006 Vanier Cup. The host Huskies fell in that national final to the Universite Laval Rouge et Or 13-8.

Huskies RB Tyler Chow zips past the Rams defence.

    The biggest crowd to attend a Canada West Conference regular season football game came back in 2013, when 10,199 spectators turned out to see the University of Alberta Golden Bears take on the University of Manitoba Bisons at Investors Group Field in Winnipeg.

    The match between the Rams and Huskies at new Mosaic on Oct. 1 has obviously benefited from the marketing arms on a number of fronts including the Rams, Roughriders and SaskTel. Whoever had the original idea of having the Rams square off against the Huskies at new Mosaic has to be considered the biggest visionary in this whole process. For the Rams, this has to been seen as a big coup for them and the University of Regina.

    The obvious draw for this game is, of course, the chance to get the first look at the province’s new state of the art football facility.

    The only question left regards how good the competitive level of this contest will be. Fans of both teams might get a glimpse of that fact this coming Friday in Saskatoon, as the Huskies host the Rams at 7 p.m. at Griffiths. With that said, Friday’s clash is the regular season opener for both sides, and opening day games are usually filled with their share of unexpected occurrences.

New Mosaic Stadium under construction back in April.

    Both teams staged a classic to close their respective regular season schedules last year at old Mosaic Stadium. The Huskies trailed 34-11 late in the third quarter before rallying for a 38-37 victory.

    The Rams finished the 2015 campaign at 0-8 with that loss. The Huskies improved to 3-5 to claim the last playoff berth in Canada West. U of S’s season came to a close with a 37-29 loss in a Canada West semifinal playoff contest in Calgary against the University of Calgary Dinos.

    Both the Rams and Huskies will be improved. Thanks to a strong recruiting class, the Huskies are probably closer to returning to the form of achieving a 6-2 regular season record.

    No matter where the Rams and Huskies are in the Canada West standings by Oct. 1, the SaskTel Fall Classic is well on its way to being an overwhelming success.

    If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

Colts surge past Hilltops for top spot in PFC

Balance of power shifts in CJFL with Calgary victory

Defensive back Dylan Niedermaier returns an interception for the Colts.

    The Calgary Colts were ready to take care of business, and they did just that.

    On Sunday at Saskatoon Minor Football Field, the Colts took a big step to joining the upper echelon of the Canadian Junior Football League downing the defending league champion Saskatoon Hilltops 36-21. The Colts stormed out to a 36-0 lead after three quarters against their biggest nemesis before the venerable Hilltops tried to make a desperate rally in the fourth quarter.

    Having hired British Columbia Football Conference legend Matthew (Snoop) Blokker as head coach before the start of the 2014 season, the Colts have been on the rise. After going 0-8 in 2013 the season before Blokker came on board, the Colts advanced to the Prairie Football Conference final in each of the last two years posting a 9-7 record in regular season play only to fall to the Hilltops. The storied Hilltops advanced to win the Canadian Bowl after each of those victories.

Quarterback Bailey Wasdal (#4) dives in for a Colts touchdown.

    Coming into this first and only regular season encounter with the Hilltop in the 2016 campaign, the Colts visibly had a different demeanor. When the dust settled, they improved to 3-0 to sit alone in first place in the Prairie Football Conference, while the Hilltops fell to 2-1.

    “We came in here with a different kind of mentality than we had in previous years,” said Colts starting quarterback Bailey Wasdal. “We came in ready. We weren’t scared.

    “We knew we were coming home with two points. I wasn’t too surprised with the way we came out flying. We just have to be better in the second half.”

    Calgary’s defence set the tone early as defensive back Dylan Niedermaier returned an interception 40 yards deep into Saskatoon territory. That set up a short drive that ended with Wasdal hitting receiver Jake Creasey on a nine-yard scoring toss to put the visitors up 7-0 just over four minutes into the contest.

The Colts celebrate a fumble return touchdown by Dallas Burke (#17).

    Due to bad field position, the Hilltops were forced to concede a safety with 1:59 to play in the first quarter to give Calgary a 9-0 edge. The Colts proceeded to go up 16-0 just as the opening frame expired as Wasdal hit receiver Richard Sindani with a 12-yard scoring toss coming off a swing pass play.

    Things only got worse for the Toppers in the second quarter, when Colts defensive back Luk Catellier made an interception to set up another Calgary scoring drive. That ensuing offensive series was capped by a one-yard touchdown dive by Wasdal to put the Colts up 23-0.

    The hole got deeper for the hosts, when the Hilltops proceeded to muff the ensuing kickoff. The ball was recovered by Colts receiver Dallas Burke, who ran the ball home 20 yards for another major score to put the Colts up 30-0 with 6:44 to play in the second quarter.

    Colts kicker Stephen Fabian booted a 37-yard field goal to give Calgary a 33-0 edge at halftime.

    “We definitely did a lot of things well, and it is going to show in the film for sure,” said Wasdal. “I think we came out trying to be physical, and I think that is what we did.

Dylan Minshull (#21) ran for 169 yards on 22 carries for the Colts.

    “We kind of asserted ourselves in the first half, and we just showed that we weren’t afraid. We were ready to bang, and we came out doing that.”

    Fabian nailed a 40-yard field goal early in the third quarter to put the Colts up 36-0.

    The Hilltops attempted a comeback in the fourth quarter. Just 15 seconds into the frame, Hilltops receiver Jason Price outfought a couple of Colts defenders for the ball to pull in a 12-yard scoring toss from quarterback Jared Andreychuk to cut Calgary’s lead to 36-7.

    Andreychuk proceeded to hit Price on a deep 32-yard connection for another Hilltops major score to trim Calgary’s lead to 36-14 with 8:08 to play in the game. With 2:53 remaining on the clock, running back Logan Fischer muscled in a major on the ground from three yards out to pull the Hilltops to within 36-21.

    The rally was sniffed out on Saskatoon’s next offensive series, when Andreychuk was intercepted by Colts defensive back Jordan Rae.

    Andreychuk completed 19-of-34 passes for 227 yards, two touchdowns, but he was intercepted three times. Fischer piled up 110 yards rushing on 23 carries.

Jason Price hauls in a 32-yard TD catch for the Hilltops.

    Wasdal completed 18-of-23 passes for 165 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions for the Colts. Calgary running back Dylan Minshull piled up 169 yards rushing on 22 carries.

    The Colts defence forced five takeaways in the contest, while the Hilltops were only able to force one turnover from the opposition.

    While both teams have six games remaining on their respective regular season schedules, the Colts hold the standings tiebreaker with Sunday’s win over the Hilltops going forward.

    “It is absolutely huge,” said Wasdal. “We had our own destiny in our own hands.

    “We had to get it done against the Hilltops. We just have to get it done the rest of the season, and we will have that home field playoff game.”

    The Hilltops return to action this coming Sunday, when they travel to Edmonton to take on the Wildcats (0-3). The Colts host the Edmonton Huskies (1-2) on Saturday.

    If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

Expect Blades to hit homer with Howe day

The Gordie Howe statue in front of the SaskTel Centre.

    The Saskatoon Blades have mastered the art of the emotional tribute since coming under the ownership of Mike Priestner, and their upcoming regular season home opener might provide the biggest challenge to date in this department.

    The brain trust of the local WHL franchise is planning a “Thank You, Mr. Hockey” day, when the Blades open their home regular season schedule against the Swift Current Broncos on Sunday, Sept. 25 at 2 p.m. at the SaskTel Centre. Of course, the Blades will be honouring one of the greatest hockey players of all time in the late Gordie Howe. Howe, who was born in a farmhouse in Floral, Sask., and moved to Saskatoon at age 9, passed away earlier this year on June 10 at age 88.

    It is expected that cremated remains of Gordie and his wife, Colleen, will be interred in front of the SaskTel Centre by the Gordie Howe statue. This will occur if the Government of Saskatchewan approves designating the Gordie Howe statue and a small piece of land around it a cemetery. Colleen Howe passed away on March 6, 2009.

    Saskatoon city council has begun the process of applying to the province regarding the special designation for the Gordie Howe statue.

    Currently, the plan for the festivities on Sept. 25 will see the cremated remains of both Gordie and Colleen be interred during a private ceremony at the statue. From there, the Howe family will make their way to the newly built Circle Drive South Bridge, which is being renamed the Gordie Howe Bridge.

    The day’s events will then shift back to the SaskTel Centre for a special pre-game ceremony. All four of Gordie and Colleen’s children will be in the city for all the day’s activities.

    At the moment, the pre-game ceremony is slated to be 25 minutes in length. The Blades will also unveil other special initiatives closer to Sept. 25, and some will be kept a surprise until game day.

    This will be a must attend Blades game. Anytime they have hosted a special pre-game ceremony with an emotional component it has been a hit.

    Some of the more notable ones include honouring former team member Nelson Nogier when he played is first game back in Saskatoon as a member of the Red Deer Rebels, rallying for La Loche this past January after a shooting occurred in that community and supporting Grade 2 student Naomi Lendvay, who is fighting stage four pediatric cancer.

    If you have seen the Blades host other pre-game ceremonies in the past, you can expect the one they hold to honour Gordie Howe will be pretty cool and emotional in a good way.

    The Blades have hinted a couple of former rivals and other special guests will be in attendance. For citizens in Saskatoon and area, this provides a chance to recognize a Canadian icon who really put the city on the map. When you bring up Gordie Howe’s name, there is no shortage of great stories and the ones that have already been told never lose their lustre when they are told again.

Hilltops get past first bump, face big challenge in Colts

RB Logan Fischer zips upfield for the Hilltops.

    The venerable Saskatoon Hilltops showed a bit of a hiccup regarding the after effects of losing 16 players to graduation after last season.

    On Sunday, the Hilltops traveled to Edmonton to face the Huskies jumping out to a 22-0 lead after the first quarter before the offence dried up for a bit. The defending Canadian Junior Football League champions held a commanding 22-3 at halftime, before the Huskies closed to within 22-20 early in the fourth quarter.

    Just when things looked in doubt, a couple of steady veterans came through. With 9:59 to play in the fourth quarter, fourth year running back Logan Fischer ran in his third touchdown of the day to put the Hilltops up 29-20. Fifth-year quarterback Jared Andreychuk added a rushing major of his own with under 30 seconds to play in the contest to give the Hilltops a 35-20 victory.

    Andreychuk completed 20 of 28 passes for 218 yards and one touchdown coming on a trick play throw to defensive lineman Tom Schnitzler. Defensive lineman Blake Hermann had a huge game with six tackles and three sacks in being named the defensive player of the week for the Prairie Football Conference.

    Normally, the Hilltops usually romp over the Huskies, but an improved Edmonton side was ready for a battle. When the dust settled, Saskatoon found a way to improve to 2-0, while the Huskies fell to 0-2.

    Now the Hilltops head into a showdown for first place in the PFC with the Calgary Colts (2-0) this coming Sunday at 1 p.m. at Saskatoon Minor Football Field. This coming weekend will be a big one for the Hilltops as they celebrate their 70^th anniversary.

    The Toppers will be hold special functions in the days leading up to the game with the Colts, where all the Hilltops alumni in attendance will be introduced at halftime.

    When the Hilltops hit a rough stretch, you have to love how Tom Sargeant says first the coaching staff, including himself, have to find ways to be better in order to help their players be better. You can bet the Toppers intensity will be up at practice to ensure the team adds a capper to what will be a memorable weekend.

Huskies QB of the future looks good

QB Mason Nyhus slings a pass for the Huskies.

    While all eyes are focused on who the University of Saskatchewan Huskies will start at quarterback in the present, their likely signal caller of the future showed the team doesn’t have to worry about depth at that position.

    On Saturday at Griffiths Stadium, rookie Mason Nyhus, who just graduated from Regina’s Riffel High School, was firing lasers all over the field, when his turn came up to take snaps under centre for the Huskies in a controlled scrimmage against the University of Alberta Golden Bears. The youngster looked fairly composed and showed off some good chemistry with fellow rookie receiver in Ben Getzlaf, who just graduated from Saskatoon’s Holy Cross High School.

    Nyhus comes to the Huskies as a highly touted prospect. He quarterbacked Saskatchewan’s provincial team to a bronze medal win at the 2015 Football Canada Cup in Saint Jean, Que.

    At the International Bowl series that ran Jan. 31 to Feb. 1 in Arlington, Texas, Nyhus was calling signals for Canada’s under-18 team. In July, Nyhus was a member of Canada’s Junior National Team that won the International Federation of American Football under-19 World Championship in Harbin, China.

    With the Huskies, Nyhus won’t be thrown to the fire right away. The training camp battle for the starting quarterback spot is between Drew Burko, who is in his fifth year, and Kyle Siemens, who is in his third year.

    A year ago, Burko was the incumbent starter for the Huskies, but he lost job as the team struggled. Burko threw nine interceptions in six starts.

    Siemens finished the year starting the Huskies final two regular season games and their Canada West Conference semifinal playoff loss to the University of Calgary Dinos. The Huskies were 3-5 in regular season play in 2015 after going 6-2 in 2014.

    The Huskies open the 2016 regular season against the University of Regina Rams on Friday, Sept. 2 at 7 p.m. at Griffiths Stadium.

    Nyhus will be able to learn the ropes at the Canadian Interuniversity Sport level playing behind Burko and Siemens, which will include learning how to balance school work with athletes. The first day of classes is usually a shocker for first-year students. Under a different set of circumstances, Nyhus might even be able to start as a rookie.

    With that said, rookie starting quarterbacks usually get beat up at the CIS level. During Saturday’s controlled scrimmage, Nyhus wasn’t going to see all the different looks the Golden Bears defence has or face all of U of A’s starters at once.

    Nyhus will have the benefit of being able to become a successor in two to three years. If the business major puts in his work getting physically stronger, becoming a student of the game and tackling his studies in the classroom, he will shine one day.

    If the unthinkable happens that both Burko and Siemens are lost to injury at the same time, Nyhus will likely be a capable fill in.

Hockey Huskies load up on WHL grads

    The University of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s hockey is loading with some major WHL talent as they attempt to defend their Canada West title.

    On Wednesday, the Huskies announced they have added 10 former WHL veterans to their roster. The additions include forwards Alex Forsberg, Connor Gay, Wyatt Johnson, Elliott Peterson, Carson Stadnyk, Colton Stephenson and Jordan Tkatch. On defence, the Huskies added Colby Harmsworth and Tanner Lishchynsky, while goaltender Daniel Wapple rounds out the recruiting class.

    Before Wednesday’s announcement, a prominent alumnus of the Huskies men’s hockey team told me this class was going to be really good, and he wasn’t kidding. At forward, the Huskies could easily create a new first line from their first-year players.

    Forsberg’s addition will likely turn out to be a huge one. The brother of Huskies defenceman Jesse Forsberg, Alex’s major junior career started out on a slow pace being shouldered with prodigy status as the first overall selection in the 2010 WHL Bantam Draft by the Prince George Cougars.

    He was eventually picked up by the Saskatoon Blades for the start of the 2014-15 campaign and regained his confidence recording 13 goals and 20 assists with “the Bridge City Bunch” in 36 games before being dealt to the Victoria Royals.

    Last season with the Royals, Forsberg finished ninth in league scoring collecting 31 goals, 60 assists and a plus-22 rating in the plus-minus department in 71 regular season games. The Waldheim, Sask., product’s best hockey is likely still ahead of him and not behind him.

    Gay finished up his WHL career last season leading his hometown Blades in scoring with 25 goals and 47 assists in 70 regular season games. That marked the second straight season he has 20 or more goals in a WHL campaign.

    Stadnyk will join the Huskies after participating in Edmonton Oilers rookie camp. Last season, Stadnyk, who stands 6-foot-2 and weighs 185 pounds, had 21 goals, 28 assists and a plus-13 rating in 71 regular season games with the Everett Silvertips.

    Harmsworth was the Hitmen’s overage captain last season, when he collected two goals, 11 assists and a plus-three rating in 67 regular season games. During his four seasons with the Hitmen, the Saskatoon product, who stands 6-foot-2 and weighs 193 pounds, was a steady defensive defenceman.

    Wapple, who stands 5-foot-11 and weighs 174 pounds, played for both the Regina Pats and Vancouver Giants last season as an overager before finishing up the 2015-16 campaign in junior A with the Estevan Bruins of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League. The Saskatoon product’s most memorable WHL season came in 2014-15 when he posted a 29-15-10 record, a 3.03 goals against average and a .906 save percentage in 56 appearances with the Pats.

    He will provide a solid goaltending partner with starting netminder Jordon Cooke. If Cooke ends up being lost due to injury for a lengthy stretch, Wapple provides a strong insurance policy.

    With these additions, the ancient Rutherford Rink will likely be rocking, when the Huskies open their regular season against the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds on Oct. 7 at 7 p.m.

Slobodzian commits to UND

Willow Slobodzian has committed to the Fighting Hawks.

    Saskatoon Stars gifted offensive defender Willow Slobodzian has already found a home for her university career.

    On Sunday via Twitter, the 16-year-old announced her commitment to join the University of North Dakota Fighting Hawks women’s team. The Clavet, Sask., product still isn’t eligible to play at the university level for another two years.

    Last season, Slobodzian won the Colleen Sostorics award as the top defender in the Saskatchewan Female Midget AAA Hockey League recording six goals and 13 assists in 28 regular season games.     Slobodzian was a key part in helping the Stars win back-to-back league titles in 2015 and 2016, which included advancing to the Esso Cup national championship tournament in both years. The Stars captured a bronze medal in 2015 and finished fourth in 2016.

    Slobodzian attended the selection camp for Canada’s under-18 women’s team early this month, and she suited up for Canada in a three game series against the United States picking up one assist.

    The Fighting Hawks definitely landed a gem with Slobodzian’s commitment. Very few players even in the university ranks can equal her smooth skating stride, her accurate blast from the point, her uncanny playmaking ability and her sound play in the defensive zone.

    If she keeps improving, she definitely has the potential to play at the highest level one day on the international stage.

    If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.