Battle of undefeated teams up next for Hilltops

3-0 Saskatoon faces 3-0 Thunder in Regina

Drake Douglas has been making big plays for the Hilltops.

Just saying “Saskatoon versus Regina” is enough to stoke the passions in Saskatchewan’s amateur football community.

For venerable Saskatoon Hilltops and the Regina Thunder, it is “rivalry week” in their respective CJFL campaigns. On Saturday at 7 p.m. at Mosaic Stadium in Regina, the defending CJFL champion Hilltops take on their provincial rivals in the Thunder in a battle of 3-0 teams. The winner will sit alone in first place in the CJFL’s Prairie Football Conference.

The Hilltops head into this regular season clash rated first in the CJFL’s Top 10 Power Rankings, while the Thunder are rated fourth. For the followers of both clubs, the hype for Saturday’s game is well underway.

Legendary Hilltops head coach Tom Sargeant is looking for his players to have their best outing of the campaign. He also knows a long road remains in the 2024 campaign following Saturday’s encounter.

“We enjoy the process, the preparation,” said Sargeant. “It is game four, so this should be our best game of the year.

“Coming off a bye, we’re all fresh, and we’ve got a lot of time to figure out what we need to do and how we need to do it just like they are. It is just going to come down to who is going to control the line of scrimmages and who is going to execute their game plans better”

Sadik Sadik is having a breakout season for the Thunder.

In their three games this season, the Hilltops have outscored their opposition 137-33. The Thunder have outscored their opponents 127-14 in their three contests. Last season, the Hilltops took all three meetings against the Thunder including two regular season encounters and a 21-13 victory in the PFC final at Saskatoon Minor Football Field.

The Hilltops go into Saturday’s contest with a large cast of star playmakers on offence in quarterback Trey Reider, running backs Corbin Ebben and Charles Sawi and receivers Drake Douglas and Datiel Fountaine. Douglas has 17 receptions for a PFC leading 319 yards and four touchdowns. He tops the PFC in punt returns (18) and punt return yards (229).

Saskatoon’s offensive line is solid once again being anchored by left tackle Davin Johnson and right tackle Cody Shumanski.

The Thunder counter with their stars in quarterback Carter Moberg, running backs Sadik Sadik and Ryland Leichert, and receivers Zak Kwiatek and Lucas Di Iorio. 

Dalton Urban drops into coverage for the Hilltops.

Sadik is having a breakout campaign as a 22-year-old leading the PFC in rushing yards (358) and rushing touchdowns (five) on 40 carries. He also has seven catches for 133 yards and two touchdowns.

Regina’s offensive line is anchored by left tackle Mekhi Molleken and centre Max McFadden.

“They know us just as well as we know ourselves and vice versa,” said Sargeant. “Everyone has put in time and energy to come out and play a great game.

“That is all we’re looking for. I’m excited to go down to Regina to Mosaic. Hey, 3-0 versus 3-0, it doesn’t get much better than that.”

On defence, the Hilltops have a number of playmakers in defensive end Kai Kukurudza, defensive tackle Johnathon Stevens, middle linebacker Isaac Michayluk and defensive halfback Nathan Young and safety Dalton Urban. Young has returned two interceptions for touchdowns this season.

The Thunder counter with a host of playmakers on defence in middle linebacker Stephen Smith, outside linebackers Mitchell Tanchak and Zach Cloutier and defensive backs Noah Zimroz, Marcus Butz and Cooper Filazek. 

Ryland Leichert runs the ball for the Thunder in October 2023.

Tanchak, Zimroz, Butz and Filazek each have two interceptions for the Thunder.

Sargeant believes Saturday’s clash has the makings to be a great game but again cautions there is still a long way to go in the 2024 campaign after Saturday’s contest.

“It is game four,” said Sargeant. “You’re looking for placing and standings and all that other stuff, but it is game four.

“You know what? We’re going there, and they’re at home, so they’re going to be feeling good about themselves. They’re going to want to play well and represent in front of their fans.

“We’re going there, and you know, as I said, come out and play our best game of the year. That is all I’m asking.”

Hilltops End Zone Scholarship Dinner set for Sept. 28

The Annual Hilltops End Zone Scholarship Dinner is set for September 28.

The dinner will be held in the main hall of the Gordie Howe Sports Centre building located at the south end of Saskatoon Minor Football Field. The doors for the dinner will open at 4:15 p.m. and dinner will be served at 5 p.m.

The presenting sponsors of the event are TCU Financial and SaskTel. It is hosted in conjunction with the Hilltops community partners in the Saskatchewan Roughrider Foundation. The official beverage sponsor is the Crossmount Cider Company.

All proceeds of the event go towards the Saskatoon Hilltop Scholarship Fund.

The guest speakers for the End Zone Dinner are still to be announced. Past guest speakers have included a host of stars and legends from the CFL’s Roughriders including the late George Reed, Darian Durant, Chris Getzlaf, Neal Hughes, Al Johns, Carm Carteri, Derrick Moncrief and Jorgen Hus.

Single tickets for the event are $100, and a table of eight goes for $725. Ticket purchases include admission to that night’s CJFL regular season contest between the Hilltops and the Regina Thunder set for 7 p.m. at SMF Field. Tickets for the End Zone Dinner can be purchased by clicking right here.

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

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