The Rod Pedersen Show has hit with #CFLsim

Virtual Cameron Judge does a sack dance on a big TV screen.

    The crew with The Rod Pedersen Show appears to have hammered a home run with a CFL simulation broadcast.

    On Friday night, The Rod Pedersen Show ran a Facebook Live broadcast of a virtual clash between the host Saskatchewan Roughriders and the visiting Montreal Alouettes. The virtual showdown played out on a Doug Flutie’s Maximum Football video game, and it occurred when the regularly schedule regular season game was supposed to happen between both sides.

    At the moment, real life CFL action has been sidelined due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the pandemic has no bearing on simulation games.

    Actually, #CFLsim games have been shown for a least a couple of weeks now on Twitch.tv.

    The Rod Pedersen Show elected to broadcast Friday’s game featuring the virtual Roughriders and reported picking up over 9,000 views are Facebook Live.
    Rod Pedersen provided the play-by-play of the broadcast, and Darren Dupont took on colour commentator duties.
    The action was swift and very enjoyable thanks to the outstanding efforts by Pedersen and Dupont. 

Virtual Nick Marshall makes an interception on my TV screen.

    Their commentary kept you glued to the broadcast that ran about 94 minutes in length.

    Pedersen was the Roughriders play-by-play voice for 20 years before Derek Taylor took on that role before the start of last season.

    With all due respect to Taylor who is a good and talented guy, it was refreshing to hear Pedersen doing a call of a Roughriders game, even a virtual one. For people in Saskatchewan, Pedersen’s call provided a feeling of normalcy.

    Dupont was ace on colour thanks to his knowledge of Canadian players, who played at the U Sports level.

    The broadcast began with the real Teagan Littlechief singing the Canadian national anthem. Littlechief is a regular anthem singer for real Roughriders games along with a number of other teams in Saskatchewan.

    She has developed a healthy fan following due to her spectacular rendition of O Canada.

    The virtual Roughriders came away with an 8-3 victory.

    The fans a virtual Mosaic Stadium cranked up the noise, when the Alouettes had the ball.
    After watching the game, one had to wonder if Roughriders receiver Mitchell Picton is the toughest player in the virtual CFL.

Friday’s #CFLsim game brought fun to this big TV screen.

    He handled most of the Roughriders punt return duties on Friday and was viciously erased on every return.

    Every time he touched the ball, Picton took the equivalent of a Ray Lewis hit or worse. Picton, who is an alumnus of the University of Regina Rams, got up each time and kept playing hard.

    Honestly, half the shots Picton absorbed on Friday would have eliminated fellow Rams alum in the ultra-tough Jason Clermont from the contest.

    Virtual defensive back Nick Marshall was a stud for the Roughriders and made as many big plays as the real life Marshall does.

    Viewers also learned virtual Roughriders linebacker Cameron Judge has an interesting sack celebration.

    The Rod Pedersen Show also showed comments from viewers who would make criticisms that are as colourful that occur during real life Roughriders post-game phone in shows.

    During the shutdowns that have occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic, virtual simulations of sporting events have proved to be popular.

    The Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League developed a healthy following showing its junior A league playoffs via a virtual format. It is also a great way for these leagues to keep themselves on the forefront of people’s minds.

Darren Dupont, left, and Rod Pedersen commentate on a big TV screen.

    There have been virtual showings of NASCAR races from various NASCAR circuits too during the pandemic.

    For those that turned into Friday’s #CFLsim broadcast from The Rod Pedersen Show, they would have been very entertained. Checking out future broadcasts is a definite recommendation.

    During a time when it seems like there is so much bad in the world, The Rod Pedersen show gets huge kudos for Friday night’s fun viewing.

    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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Rams prove a point in sound win over Thunderbirds

The Rams defence stops the Thunderbirds on a third-and-one gamble.

    REGINA - The University of Regina Rams showed their 6-2 regular season record last year was no illusion.

    In 2016, the Rams were guided by a first-year U Sports head coach in Steve Bryce and were coming off an 0-8 campaign in 2015. U of R posted one of the greatest single season turnarounds in U Sports history in Bryce’s first season placing first in the Canada West Conference for the first time in team history.

    In the playoffs, the Rams were one and done falling 40-34 to the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds in a Canada West semifinal match. Before last season, the last time the Rams posted a .500 or better record was when they went 6-2 in 2012 and lost that year’s Canada West final to the U of Calgary Dinos.

    Looking at the recent past, one might think what the Rams accomplished last season might be just a one year thing. It appears the wins are going to keep coming in 2017.

Rams receiver Mitch Thompson (#82) zips home for a major score.

    On Friday night at new Mosaic Stadium, the Rams soundly beat the Thunderbirds 36-20 before a crowd of about 3,000. At one point in the third quarter, the Rams were up 33-6.

    The Thunderbirds are guided by U Sports head coaching great Blake Nill, whose teams have won seven of the last nine Canada West titles. Nill guided the Dinos to six straight Canada West titles from 2008 to 2013 before joining the Thunderbirds in 2015. During his first year with UBC, Nill coached the Thunderbirds to a Canada West title and a Vanier Cup championship as U Sports national champions.

    Going into 2017, the Thunderbirds were ranked second in Canada West’s pre-season coaches’ poll, which means they are expected to meet the lofty bars that Nill’s teams usually do. UBC’s 3-5 regular season record from a year ago appears to have been viewed as an anomaly.

Rams LB Nick Cross sacks Thunderbirds QB Cole Meyer.

    That means the Rams, who were rated third in the pre-season Canada West coaches’ poll, pulled out a significant result in their win on Friday night.

    Besides Friday’s win over the Thunderbirds, the Rams knocked off the Dinos 39-3 in a neutral site pre-season tilt in Medicine Hat, Alta., on Aug. 23. The Dinos topped the pre-season Canada West coaches’ poll.

    Against the Thunderbirds on Friday, the Rams looked really good during a number of stretches. Like usual regular season openers, the Rams also had spots that didn’t go as smoothly shown by the fact they took 18 penalties that cost them 131 yards.

    The Thunderbirds were worse in the penalty department taking 23 infractions for 210 yards.

    Rams quarterback Noah Picton, who won the Hec Crighton Trophy last year as the most valuable player in U Sports football, was solid throughout the contest mixing up plays completing 23-of-35 passes for 335 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. One of those interceptions wasn’t his fault due to the fact one of his passes deflected off the hands of a Rams receiver into the hands of Thunderbirds defensive back Payton LaGrange.

Receiver Mitchell Picton caught six passes for 120 yards for the Rams.

  Rams receiver Mitchell Picton, who is Noah’s cousin, caught six passes for 120 yards. The Rams defence held the Thunderbirds offence to 318 yards of total offence and stopped the Thunderbirds on a key third-and-one gamble on the UBC 54 in the third quarter.

    Thunderbirds starting quarterback Michael O’Connor completed 14-of-25 passes for 155 yards, zero touchdowns and one interception before giving way to backup Cole Meyer on two occasions.

    Linebacker Cole Benkic, who was the 2015 Canadian Junior Football League’s defensive player of the year suiting up for the Saskatoon Hilltops, and defensive back Polis Koko both almost ran interceptions back for touchdowns for the Rams.

    U of R’s runaway win started slow before picking up steam. The Rams held a 1-0 after the first quartered ended thanks to kicker Thomas Huber scoring a single on a missed 37-yard field goal.

Rams quarterback Noah Picton throw a pass over a defender.

    Early in the second quarter, Noah Picton hit receiver Kyle Moortgat on a deep corner pattern for a 28-yard touchdown toss to put the Rams up 8-0. On the ensuing kickoff after the major, Daniel Scraper booted the ball into the end zone, and it was downed there to give the Rams another single to go up 9-0.

    Shortly before the midway point of the second quarter, Rams standout running back Atlee Simon pushed his way into the end zone from two yards out to put the hosts up 16-0.

    The Thunderbirds battled back when kicker Greg Hutchins booted a field goal from 41 yards out near the end of the second quarter and a field goal from 31 yards out early in the third quarter to cut the Rams lead to 16-6.

    The Rams restored order scoring 17 straight point to exit the third quarter with a 33-6 edge. Huber hit a field goal from 45 yards out, Mitch Thompson hauled in a 21-yard touchdown pass from Picton and backup quarterback Tyler Vieira plunged in from a yard out to complete the surge.

RB Atlee Simon darts upfield for the Rams.

    Thunderbirds running back Shane Noel ran the ball in from a yard out early in the fourth quarter to cut the Rams edge to 33-13.

    Scraper hit a field goal from 15 yards out to put the Rams up 36-13.

    Inside of the game’s final three minutes, the Thunderbirds rounded out the scoring with a Hutchins 47-yard punt single and a 23-yard touchdown toss from Meyer to receiver Marcus Davis. The Thunderbirds failed to score on a two-point conversion try after Davis’s major to cement the final at 36-20.

    UBC returns to action on Sept. 9, when they host the U of Manitoba Bisons (1-0).

    Overall on Friday night, the Rams had an impressive performance. While they made mistakes that need to be corrected, it appears the Rams ability to pile up victories in 2016 will continue in 2017.

    Next up, they travel to Calgary to face the Dinos on Sept. 8. The Dinos flattened the U of Alberta Golden Bears 55-26 in the regular season opener for both those teams on Friday in Edmonton.

    If the Rams can beat the Dinos on their turf, U of R would cement its status as being a U Sports powerhouse.

Rams honour 2000 Vanier Cup finalist team

Members of the 2000 Rams and their family watch a video highlight reel.

    The Rams honoured their 2000 Canada West championship team that advanced to that year’s Vanier Cup during halftime of Friday’s game.

    A number of players from that team and their families marched out on to the field to be saluted by the fans. They also watched a video tribute filled with various highlights of the 2000 campaign.

    The 2000 season marked the Rams second season in the Canadian university ranks after moving from the CJFL. They finished 4-4 in the regular season before catching fire in the playoffs.

    They downed the Dinos 33-32 in a Canada West semifinal match, the Bisons 25-22 in the Canada West final and the St. Mary’s University Huskies 40-36 in the Atlantic Bowl. The Rams fell 42-39 in the Vanier Cup to the University of Ottawa Gee-Gees.

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

Rams morph into “The Greatest Show on Turf”

QB Noah Picton (#4) had a spectacular regular season for the Rams.

    The 0-8 season has been left in the dust.

    A year removed from a winless campaign, the University of Regina Rams have become the most exciting team in U Sports football. At the start of the season, that concept was inconceivable.

    In 2015, the Rams had the image of being a bit of a train wreak under then head coach Mike Gibson, who left the club after only one season to join the CFL’s Edmonton Eskimos as their offensive line coach and run game coordinator. The Rams seemed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory losing four games by seven or fewer points.

    Under Gibson, the Rams were getting disconnected from their alumni, which had never been an issue in the past. Behind the scenes, there was more turmoil than most people knew.

   In the off-season, the Rams looked to the past to find their new head coach in hiring Steve Bryce. Bryce played five seasons on the Rams offensive line during their Canadian Junior Football League days from 1987 to 1991, which included a national championship win in his rookie campaign.

    With Bryce at the helm, the Rams vaulted up the standings in 2016 finishing first in the Canada West Conference for the first time in team history with a 6-2 record. In the turnaround, they put up offensive numbers to make them look like the Kurt Warner era St. Louis Rams of the NFL.

    Like the Warner era St. Louis Rams did in the NFL, the Regina Rams have become “The Greatest Show on Turf” in U Sports football.

Mitchell Picton makes a catch in traffic for the Rams.

    Since joining the Canadian university ranks in 1999, the Rams helped the University of Regina become known as “Receiver-U” due to placing a number of pass catching grads into the professional ranks. Those grads always were catching passes from great quarterbacks like Darryl Leason, Mark Anderson, Teale Orban and Marc Mueller.

    This year’s Rams have taken their reputation as a pass-happy team to another level averaging 408.4 yards through the air per game. Third-year quarterback Noah Picton has had a season that eclipses anything any Rams quarterback great from their university or junior football era could ever imagine.

    Picton completed 224-of-323 passes for 3,186 yards, 25 touchdown passes and nine interceptions. His completion percentage of 69.3 per cent is impressive, and he set a new U Sports record for passing yards in a season. Former U of Calgary Dinos quarterback Andrew Buckley, who is a rookie with the CFL’s Calgary Stampeders, held the old U Sports passing yardage record at 3,162, which was set just last season.

    Picton has also run the ball 31 times for 238 yards and reached the end zone twice via that route. He is a favourite to win the Hec Crighton Trophy as the top player in U Sports football.

RB Atlee Simon (#36) is one of the Rams overlooked weapons.

    The signal caller has also spread the ball out very well resulting in three of his receivers surpassing 500-yards receiving in an eight-game campaign. Cousin Mitchell Picton topped Canada West in receptions (58) and receiving yards (834) and his 11 receiving touchdowns led everyone in U Sports.

Sophomore Ryan Schienbein hauled in 54 passes for 790 yards and seven touchdowns. Riley Wilson finished the regular season with 37 catches for 627 yards and one touchdown.

    The Pictons, Schienbein and offensive lineman Jeremy Zver were all named Canada West all-stars on Thursday.

    The Rams are so good through the air that talented tailback Atlee Simon seemed like a forgotten man. Simon ran the ball 113 times for 567 yards and scored four touchdowns on the ground in seven appearances. He also caught 17 passes for 203 yards and four touchdowns.

    Defensively, the Rams rank third in Canada West allowing 458.6 yards per game. Linebacker Danny Nesbitt and defensive backs Kahlen Branning and Jeff Propp were also named Canada West all-stars.

    Thanks to topping the Canada West standings, the only time the Rams wouldn’t potentially be playing at home at historic Taylor Field/Mosaic Stadium during the post-season would be if they made the Vanier Cup. The only time the Rams appeared in the U Sports title game was in 2000, when they fell 42-39 to the U of Ottawa Gee Gees.

The Rams celebrate a touchdown catch from Ryan Schienbein (#14).

    Now, we will see if the Rams success in the regular season transfers over to playoffs. The fourth rated club in the U Sports top 10 rankings hosts a Canada West semifinal match on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. local time against the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds, who went 3-5 as defending Vanier Cup champions. The Rams took both head-to-head meetings with the Thunderbirds this season.

    Looking further down the road, the U Sports football post-season also hasn’t been kind in recent years to the team that wins Canada West. Over the past 17 years, the Canada West champ has only moved on to win the Vanier Cup on two occasions including the Thunderbirds last year and the U of Manitoba Bisons in 2007.

    With that said, the Rams are in a spot that they don’t realize they aren’t supposed to accomplish what they have already accomplished. They still have nothing to lose and everything to gain. With Bryce at the helm, they also have all their alumni and supporters back in the fold too.

    If they can go all the way, these current Rams will produce a season that would arguably be the squad’s most memorable including the team’s time in both the university and junior ranks.

Huskies in position to make post-season noise

QB Kyle Siemens had a solid season calling signals for the Huskies.

  The U of Saskatchewan Huskies football team might be the wildcard when it comes to the U Sports post-season.

    Of course, the Huskies have lost their last seven straight playoff games, but this might be the year they break that dubious streak. After a three-game skid dropped them to 2-3, the Huskies won their last three straight regular season games to finish at 5-3.

    They are the hottest team entering the playoffs from Canada West, and they face an opponent they finally got over the hump against. On Saturday, the Huskies travel to Calgary to face the U of Calgary Dinos (6-2) in a Canada West semifinal match at 12 p.m. local time. The Huskies are rated ninth in the U Sports rankings, while the Dinos sit in the sixth spot.

    On Oct. 22, the Huskies slipped past the Dinos 38-35 in Calgary. Entering that contest, the Dinos had won 10 straight games between the two sides including action in the regular season and playoffs.

    In the other meeting between the two sides this season, the Dinos slipped past the Huskies 20-19 in Saskatoon thanks to a last minute field goal.

Huskies RB Tyler Chow led Canada West in rushing.

    During their three-game regular season skid, the Huskies offence lost its cohesion. Part of the struggles came from the fact reliable receiver Mitch Hillis missed a pair of games due to injury. When Hillis returned, the offensive unit seemed to find a new groove.

    Despite missing a pair of games, Hillis still made the Canada West all-star team catching 35 passes for 423 yards and three touchdowns. Starting quarterback Kyle Siemens had a solid campaign completing 166-of-278 passes for 2,091 yards, 13 touchdowns and seven interceptions.

    Running back Tyler Chow topped Canada West in rushing piling up 828 yards on 127 carries and scoring seven touchdowns. Chow also caught 16 passes for 132 yards in being named a Canada West all-star along with offensive tackle Evan Johnson.

    Defensive lineman Donovan Dale anchored the Huskies defence earning Canada West all-star honours with 24 total tackles, three sacks and one interception.

    Standout kicker Sean Stenger was the conference’s all-star place kicker and punter.

DB Payton Hall (#28) makes a tackle for the Huskies.

    U of S has an X-factor in receiver Chad Braun, who is a talented graduate of the Saskatoon Hilltops of the Canadian Junior Football League. Braun caught 26 passes for 403 yards and scored two touchdowns and returned 37 punts for 449 yards and one touchdown.

    The Huskies have a number of other capable playmakers on offence including receivers Julan Lynch, Yol Piok and Ben Getzlaf along with running back Colton Klassen.

    They have a number of players that can rise to the occasion on defence including defensive lineman Matt Kozun, linebackers Justin Filteau and Quinn Pearce along with defensive back Payton Hall.

    The Huskies are right where they were expected to be as far as the regular season goes. It also feels like they haven’t reached their potential.

    It wouldn’t be a shocker if a long playoff run is finally on the horizon again for a club that has experienced eight one-and-done exits in the last nine years.

Off the Leach Luncheon was sweet

Lanny McDonald and Brian Burke spoke at the Off the Leash Luncheon.

    If you wanted to see how much the U of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s hockey team means to the Saskatoon community, all you have to do was attend the Off the Leach Luncheon on Thursday at Prairieland Park.

    A huge group of alumni and members of the Saskatoon and area hockey community turned out for this eighth annual event, which is a fundraiser for the Huskies men’s hockey team. The alumni turnout was impressive, and it shows that the Huskies hockey team means a great deal to those that wore the green and white. A large contingent of recent grads were present as well.

    At the luncheon, the Wright Construction company donated $1-million to the Home Ice Campaign, which is raising funds to build a new twin pad home rink on campus. With the Wright Construction company donation, $36-million has been raised towards building the new $41-million Merlis Belsher Place.

    The other big highlight of the evening was being entertained by the hockey stories of former NHL enforcer George Parros, Calgary Flames president of hockey operations Brian Burke and NHL legend Lanny McDonald. McDonald made a surprise appearance.

    If you live in the Saskatoon area and you haven’t been to the Off the Leash Luncheon, you are encouraged to put that function on your to do list.

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

Hilltops hit road to B.C., hammer Sun 58-2

Logan Fischer and the Hilltops stomped out the Sun.

    So much for the Canadian Bowl rematch.

    The venerable Saskatoon Hilltops hit high gear on Saturday night in Kelowna, B.C., and the rest of the teams Canadian Junior Football League likely took notice of butt kicking that happened. Participating in their first regular season cross-conference match, the Hilltops took a 4-1 record into the Apple Bowl to face the host Okanagan Sun, who entered the contest with a 6-1 mark.

    The Hilltops downed the Sun 38-24 in last year’s CJFL championship game – the Canadian Bowl – in Saskatoon.

    On Saturday, the Hilltops, who play out of the Prairie Football Conference, scored early and often to tune of a 58-2 beat down of the Sun, who are annually a powerhouse club in the British Columbia Football League.

    What made the victory even more impressive was the fact the Hilltops flew out Saturday, had to wait through a three hour flight delay and rushed through various preparations to be ready for the game’s 7 p.m. local start time at the Apple Bowl in Kelowna.

    Even with all those factors going against them, the Hilltops showed the pedigree of a team that has won the last two CJFL championships and a total of five CJFL championships in the last six years.

    Veteran power back Logan Fischer gave the Hilltops a big jump start scoring the team’s first touchdown on a nine yard run and the club’s third major on what was listed as a 27 yard run. Fischer finished with 105 yards rushing on 13 carries and had a catch for seven yards.
    Hilltops starting quarterback Jared Andreychuk completed 9-of-15 passes for 173 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions. He also ran in a major from four yards out.
    Sam Mike was the Hilltops leading receiver catching six passes for 80 yards and two touchdowns.
    Defensive lineman Tom Schnitzler had five tackles and a fumble recovery for the Toppers.

    Okanagan’s only score came on a conceded safety touch. The Sun fell to 6-2 with the loss.

    The Hilltops improve to 5-1 to still sit alone in second place in the PFC. The Calgary Colts downed the Regina Thunder 15-12 in a neutral site game at Medicine Hat on Saturday to remain first in the PFC with a 5-0 mark. The Thunder are third in the PFC with a 3-3 record.

    Saskatoon heads into a bye week along with Regina. The Toppers return to action on Oct. 1, when they travel to Regina to face the Thunder at old Mosaic Stadium at 7 p.m. If the Hilltops win that contest, they would take a huge step towards locking up at least a second place finish in the PFC and a home playoff date for the first round of the post-season.

Rams upset Thunderbirds 20-10

Noah Picton and the Rams topple UBC.

    The University of Regina Rams ensured the first game at new Mosaic Stadium will be significant, when it comes to the playoff picture in Canadian Interuniversity Sport.

    On Saturday in Vancouver, the Rams upset the defending Vanier Cup champion University of British Columbia Thunderbirds 20-10. The Thunderbirds led 10-3 at halftime before the Rams rallied with 17 unanswered points in the second quarter to claim victory.

    In the third quarter, Rams quarterback Noah Picton threw two touchdown strikes to Mitchell Picton from 10 and five yards out. Daniel Scraper hit a pair of field goals in the contest for the U of R.

Colton Zayshley returned a fumble for a touchdown for the Thunderbirds, who also received a field goal from Greg Hutchins.

    Noah Picton completed 24-of-33 passes for 268 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions for the Rams. Khalid Kornegay topped the Rams with 109 yards receiving on three catches.

Michael O’Connor completed 32-of-48 passes for 337 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions starting at quarterback for the Thunderbirds.

    The Rams improved to 2-1 to sit third in the Canada West Conference. The University of Saskatchewan Huskies hold on to second in Canada West with a 2-1 record thanks to their 41-39 head-to-head overtime victory against the Rams in Week 1.

    The Thunderbirds fall to 1-2.

    The Rams and Huskies will play the first ever game at new Mosaic Stadium in Regina on Oct. 1 at 2 p.m. The single game tickets for this contest are already soldout. Tickets for that contest can still be purchased by buying “flex” ticket packages from the Rams, which include tickets to other games.

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