Football Articles

Football Thriving in Saskatchewan

Football thriving in Saskatchewan
By Ian Hamilton, Leader-Post

Football in Saskatchewan -- not the University of Regina Rams or University of Saskatchewan Huskies -- should be the big winner today at Taylor Field.

The Rams and Huskies are to meet in the Canada West football final this afternoon at 2 o'clock. One of them will win the Hardy Cup and will remain alive in the chase for the CIS championship, but football in the province should benefit.

That's what happens when the collective strength of the game in Saskatchewan gets exposure.

"It's a confirmation of what people here have been saying and what other people across the country forget about if they're not here: We can play this game,'' Huskies head coach Brian Towriss said Friday. "We have four good postsecondary football teams in this province now.

"A lot of people thought when the Rams came in (to the Canada West conference from the PFC in 1999) that we'd drop down a notch or they'd drop down a notch. That hasn't happened. We're both pretty good and we'll continue to be pretty good.''

By extension, so will other levels of football in the province.

"This should encourage more communities, schools and players to be involved in football,'' noted Rams head coach Frank McCrystal. "They can recognize the importance and value of the game, especially with the fact it is made up -- in this particular game -- of student-athletes.

"Not to take anything away from the junior teams, but playing university football is an opportunity to play at a high level and to get an education while you're playing. It's such a positive thing.''

McCrystal said the fact that Saskatchewan's two university teams are competing in the final of the seven-team Canada West conference should justify the cost the province's high schools pay annually to outfit their teams.

With the number of squads remaining static or even growing, coaches at the high school level can continue training their players at a high level.

That in turn allows the players to step in and compete at the university level with the Rams and Huskies or in the junior ranks with the province's two PFC teams, the Regina-based Prairie Thunder and the Saskatoon Hilltops.

"Kids in this province love to play football,'' Towriss said. "Look at all the six-man (high school) teams that are out there. That participation at the grass-roots level is outstanding.

"I don't know if we can generate any more interest (with this game). Pretty much every high school already has a football team, unless they have to drive 200 miles to get competition.

"There are lots of kids all over the province who aspire to play (university football),'' he continued. "Some of them leave to go to schools in other provinces, but not as many as there used to be. As well, more and more kids from outside the province want to come here to play.''

Today's contest pits the teams which finished third (Regina) and fourth (Saskatchewan) in the conference's regular-season standings.

The squads split their regular-season meetings, with the Rams winning 31-7 at Taylor Field on Sept. 7 and the Huskies prevailing 23-4 in Saskatoon on Oct. 19.

Both teams are coming off huge semifinal victories; the Rams beat the second-place Calgary Dinos 39-17 on Nov. 1 and Saskatchewan defeated the first-place Manitoba Bisons 37-18 on Sunday.

"You've got two teams left that prepare very well to play,'' Towriss said. "Maybe we're not the most athletic, but we're usually pretty well-prepared and focused on what we do.''

"It's going to be exciting,'' McCrystal added. "It's going to be a real showcase of football in Saskatchewan.''

The winner of today's game is to travel to Montreal for the Mitchell Bowl, Nov. 16 against either the McGill Redmen or Concordia Stingers. The winner of that game advances to the Vanier Cup, Nov. 23 at Toronto's SkyDome.