Football Alberta is proud to host its’ 22[SUP]nd[/SUP] Annual Senior Bowl which is a high school football all-star game for graduating Grade 12 players. This years game is a rubber match of sorts as the “South” took an early lead in the series at the start at one point leading the series 6 wins to 1 loss by 1996. However the “North” has clawed back into it over the years and on the strength of four wins in the last five games has now tied the series 10-10-1 (with the one tie coming in 2001).
After 21 years the Senior Bowl record of wins and losses was finally tied up by the “North” with a convincing 24-17 win over the “South” to make the series 10-10-1 since 1990. The “South” made it interesting early sprinting out to a 10-0 lead on the strength of a 27 yard field goal by Henry Wise Wood’s Steven McCaffrey and a 19 yard TD pass from Foothill’s Brad Karl to Central Memorial’s Adam Osterling. The “North” then roared back in the second quarter to tie the game at the half on the strength of a fake field goal TD pass from Harry Ainlay’s Jahlani Gilbert-Knorren to Mallan Roberts out of M.E. LaZerte and a 27 yard field goal from St. Albert’s Jean-Luc Budgeaud. The “North” scored twice in the second half again with trickery on a third down gamble pass from Gilbert-Knorren to St. Albert’s Keaton Hoddinott and a bootleg by Gilbert-Knorren. The “South” came back late on a 14 yard TD pass from Karl to Braden Heffernan from Central Memorial but that’s as close as they came. For their efforts both Gilbert-Knorren and Karl were named MVP’s for their respective teams.
At Calgary’s McMahon Stadium on a cold, wet holiday Monday, the “North” streaked to a 23-7 first quarter lead on the strength of two Danny Sawchuk touchdowns and two Andrew Jevne field goals. The Peace River receiver scored on one pass reception from Bev Facey’s Adam Seniuk and one fumble recovery in the end zone while the Sylvan Lake receiver/kicker was good from 17, 24, and 32. The “South” countered back right before the half on a one yard plunge by Raymond’s Storm Bartsoff (the convert failed). The “North” opened the second half with a touchdown pass from Garrett Gleisner to St. Albert’s Aaron Watkins which was answered later in the quarter by the “South” with Bartsoff’s second touchdown of the day (2 point convert attempt failed). Jevne added his fourth field goal of the game early in the fourth to push the score to 32-19 and defensive lineman Joel Seutter from Salisbury scored on a short yardage offensive play with less than a minute left (convert failed) to make the final 38-19. Seniuk took the MVP for the “North” while Bartsoff was named the “South” MVP.
With 30 seconds left in the game the “North” was leading by 3 points and had the ball on third down and 5 at the “South’s” 15 yard line. It should have been a chip shot for Strathcona’s Billy Harvey, who had already had connected from 37 yards out earlier in the game. What happened next was the gamble-heard-round-Alberta as QB Ben Gorniak from Leduc hit Salisbury’s Nicolas Ross for a TD pass to seal the victory for the “North” in front of 1,450 fans at Edmonton’s Foote Field. In an offensive showcase both Gorniak and “South” QB Brett Serhyenko broke the old record for passing yards with 226 and 215 yards respectively in the game. Serhyenko, Tom Shaw from Springbank, and Taylor Nill from St. Francis recorded the majors for the “South”. Ross’s TD, and Harvey’s FG were added onto by another TD from Ross and a rushing TD from St. Albert’s Chris Dobko as well as the first ever kick return for a TD by Harry’s Ainlay’s David Berg for the “North”. Gorniak took the MVP honours for the “North” while Henry Wise Wood’s linebacker Jordan Colebrook was named the “South” MVP.
With 9 seconds left in the game Lord Beaverbrook’s Braeden George hauled in a 37 yard touchdown pass from his schoolmate Trent Peterson for the winning score for the “South” in a tightly played game in front of 1,123 fans at Calgary’s McMahon Stadium. This was definitely a defensive struggle as both high powered offenses had a hard time getting on track. St. Francis’s Anthony DeZorzi lead the way for the “South” as the linebacker recorded seven solo tackles, a quarterback sack, and a fumble recovery on his way to being named his teams Most Valuable Player while St. Francis Xavier safety Rhys Coppens won the M.V.P. honours for the “North with two interceptions along with 124 yards in kickoff return yardage. Other scorers in the game included George again with a first quarter major again from Peterson and a first quarter field goal from Henry Wise Wood’s Karim Ould Hamouda for the “South” while Ross Sheppard’s Hugh O’Neill kicked two field goals and added two singles to go with Salisbury’s Duncan Hankinson’s second quarter major for the “North”.
On the strength of two first half touchdowns the “North” held off a late “South” rally to win 16-9 in front of 1,437 fans at Clarke Stadium in Edmonton. Strathcona quarterback Corbin Sharun opened the scoring for the “North” on the opening play of the second quarter with a six yard TD run that was followed up 13 minutes later with a Sharun to Bev Facey receiver Kevin Wuthrich touchdown pass to put the “North” up 14-0 at the half. The “South” opened the second half with a single on the kickoff then made it interesting late after the “North” could only muster two singles in the second half with a late TD from Henry Wise Wood’s Josh Leung on 22 yard TD pass from his schoolmate Graham Kelba with 55 seconds left. A fumble on the next “North” possession made it interesting as the “South” moved the ball down deep into “North” territory before turning it over on downs with 8 seconds left. For their efforts the Linemen of the Game were Bishop O’Byrne’s Josh Symons for the “South” and Lac La Biche’s Brett Waine for the “North”. The Most Valuable Players of the Game were Wuthrich for the “North” and Bowness linebacker Nickalas Blevins for the “South”.
The largest point total and margin of victory was posted by the “South” in this year’s contest. St. Francis High School in Calgary played a lead roll as wide receiver Marco Ianuzzi and running back Anthony Woodson combined for 4 of the “South’s” 7 TD’s. The other scorers were slotback Travis Gorski from Medicine Hat, Bow Valley QB Caleb Clark, and DB Andrew Goldie from Western Canada. Archbishop Jordan High School in Sherwood Park provided all the points for the “North” as slotback Joel Barry hauled in a 7 yard TD pass while defensive back David Kiggins returned an interception 79 yards for a TD. For their efforts Ianuzzi, who set a new single game record for rushing yards with 169 on 7 carries, and Barry, who accounted for half of the “North’s” total yardage by himself, were named “South” and “North” MVP’s respectfully.
The first ever overtime game in Senior Bowl history saw a flurry of scoring in the 1[SUP]st[/SUP] quarter followed by a defensive struggle in the 2[SUP]nd[/SUP] and 3[SUP]rd[/SUP] which was finally capped off by another barrage of scoring in the 4[SUP]th[/SUP]. The “South” leapt out to an early 14-0 lead on the strength of a 73 yard interception return by St. Francis’ Mike Viani and a 45 yard strike from Bowness’ Jason Borodenko to Henry Wise Wood receiver Ahmad Borhot. The “North” countered with a 6 yard run by St. Albert’s Devon Jones to end the first.
The fireworks came again in the 4[SUP]th[/SUP] quarter as a “South” TD from Foothills Mark Vandal was followed by two field goals from Fort Saskatchewan’s Tyler Mariacci and a TD from Cameron Thomas out of Eastglen (followed by a 2 pt. Convert completion to Archbishop O’Leary’s Damon Fraietta) to tie the score for the “North” and sent the game to overtime where Salisbury’s Tyler Budinski rambled 17 yards for the winning TD.
The MVP’s were Borodenko for the “South” and David Raborn out of Bev Facey for the “North” who set a new mark for receiving yards with 7 catches for 129 yards.
The 14[SUP]th[/SUP] annual game featured two distinctly different halfs of football as the “North” completely dominated the first half only to see the “South” put together a furious rally in the second half to win their first game since 1998.
Strathcona tailback Tyler O’Gorman was the star of the show in the first half as he racked up all 26 points for the “North” which included three touchdowns, three converts, a field goal and two singles to set a new record for points scored in a Senior Bowl (almost doubling the old record of 15). Then things took a complete turnaround as the “South”, lead by Henry Wise Wood QB Mark Stinson and L.C.I.’s multi-talented linebacker/tight-end Andrew Patzer, scored four unanswered TD’s in the second half to vault them pas the “North” and win the game.
For their efforts, O’Gorman took the M.V.P. honours for the “North” while Patzer was named M.V.P. for the “South”.
With the “North” clinging to a one point lead late in the third quarter defensive back Adam Skitsko out of Archbishop Jordan reached into the sky and put the game away as he returned an interception 25 yards for the TD that put his team up 21-13 in front of a new record crowd of 1,435.
This marked the third time in four years that the “North” had been victorious and the fourth year in a row that the “South” has gone home from the game they had dominated in the 90’s empty handed.
Things looked good for the “South” early as they opened the scoring on a 27 yard FG only to see the “North” score twice on a 90 yard run by Archbishop Jordan QB Jay Meraw and a 14 yard TD reception by Bellerose slotback T.J. Warren by the end of the 1[SUP]st[/SUP] quarter. The “South” made it interesting with a 12 yard TD reception by Bishop McNally’s Jermaine Campbell late in the half and a 17 yard FG from L.J. Wall out of Ernest Manning early in the third but Skitsko’s intereception sealed the day for the “North”.
L.C.I. offensive lineman Jeff Perrett was named the “South” M.V.P. while linebacker Brad Leier out of Whitecourt with almost twice as many tackles as anyone else took home “North” M.V.P. honours.
The first and only tie in Senior Bowl history as the “North” lead 14-4 with 4 minutes to go only to be caught by a furious “South” rally that tied it up with 1:36 seconds to go on Father Lacombe’s Michael Giacalone’s 41 yard run after a screen pass.
The “South” opened the scoring in the first half with a 24 yard FG off the foot of Winston Churchill’s Matt McDonald. He also added a single later in the half after the “North” went ahead on an amazing 92 yard TD run from Grande Prairie’s Jeff Halvorson.
The second half was quiet until Strathcona’s Cam Linke hit his teammate Mark Rogers for a 29 yard TD pass with 6 minutes to go in the game to put the “North” up 14-4. This was followed by a 35 yard FG from McDonald then Giacalone’s run to tie it up. The “North” had a final chance with 7 seconds left but Sir Winston Churchill’s Derek van den Brink blocked the FG attempt from the 22 yard line to preserve the tie.
Linebacker Jason Bobst was named the “North” M.V.P. while quarterback Charles Guedo was the M.V.P for the “South”.
A thriller as for the first time in the history of the Senior Bowl the game was decided on the last play.
The game started off with a bang as Lord Beaverbrook’s Morgan Alexander hauled in a Senior Bowl record 82 yard pass from Bowness’ Brian Hill to take the lead on the first play of the game. That was quickly followed by two TD’s from the “North’s” Willie Shulba out of Archbishop Jordan with a 5 yard run and a 63 yard punt return. Lloydminster’s Brad Ollen added a FG and the “North” lead at the half 17-8.
The second half saw the “South” pull ahead with two rushing TD’s from Foothills’ Kyle Maclean and Luke Mayer out of L.C.I. but the drive of the game came late as Jasper Place’s Matt Burrows hauled in two clutch catches on 3[SUP]rd[/SUP] down to keep the “North’s” final drive alive. Sexsmith QB Darrell Moe finished it off with a one yard plunge for the TD on the final play to win 23-22.
For their efforts Burrow’s was named the “North” M.V.P. and Mayer was named the “South” M.V.P.
After a four year absence the game returned to Edmonton and featured the largest crowd to date as 1,247 spectators jammed the U of A’s Varsity Stadium to watch the “North” win for the second time in the last three years. Salisbury’s Chad Rempel was the star for the “North” as his precision passing in the second half extended several drives and ate up the clock preserving a tight 14-8 win.
Mike Potter from Parkland and Paul Hartwick from Bishop Grandin scored the only majors of the game in the first quarter and the rest of the points came off the foot of kickers.
L.C.I. linebacker David Lowry was named M.V.P. for the “South” while Rempel took the “North” honours.
Avenging last years loss to the “North” the “South” came out strong scoring 20 unanswered points in the early part of the second quarter which included a record pass and run of 80 yards for a touchdown by Foothills Mike Miller from Bishop Carroll’s David Manning.
However just like in 1997, the “North” did not go quietly and in the final five minutes of the half they put together two drives on the strength of Sexsmith QB Blair Zahara’s arm and the running of McNally’s David Bissett to draw within six at halftime.
That was unfortunately as close as they would come as the “South” defence dominated the second half, while Aaron Williams of Bowness kicked two field goals and Cochrane’s Kyle Day caught a 9 yarder from George McDougall’s Ryan Saurett to salt the game away 33-14. Bissett for the “North” and Saurette for the “South” were named the game M.V.P.’s
Surprise, surprise, the “North” can win a game after all. With the “South” leaping out to its usual 10-0 lead a funny thing happened on the way to the blowout. Not only did the “North” come back with a nice long drive capped off by Serge Armstrong from Notre Dame’s 4 yard TD run but they took the lead before the half with an amazing 75 yard punt return for a TD by Salisbury’s Josh Little.
The “South” did mount a comeback in the second half but two spectacular TD’s from Jasper Place’s Mike Spencer (75 yard run), and Parkland’s Jeff Derman (38 yard reception from Joe McNalley) kept the “North” out front to stay to capture their second ever Senior Bowl win 28-20.
QB Jimmy Hartley from Brooks was named the “South” M.V.P. while Josh Little took the “North” M.V.P.
Definitely the biggest blowout in Senior Bowl history to date, the “South” punctuated their fourth straight win with a 29-0 pasting of the “North”. It was the first shutout in the history of the game.
Cardston QB Steve Scott was the class of the field as the Southern Alberta High School League M.V.P. shredded the “North” defence with 104 yards rushing and one TD to go along with two touchdown passes. Another “South” Standout was defensive back Lawrence Deck from St. Francis who set a Senior Bowl record for a punt return with a 96 yard thriller for a touchdown early in the game.
Things weren’t so rosy for the “North” as starting quarterback Jeff Schellenberg was knocked out early and the offense struggled only reaching inside the “South” 20 yard line once. Kick returner Russ Hart from Lindsay Thurber was named the “North” M.V.P. for his work on Special Teams.
Considered by many to be the most thrilling Senior Bowl to date the “South” pulled out their third straight and fifth overall victory. This one wasn’t easy as the “North” lead by as much as 13 points in the third quarter. Robert Lines from Grand Centre opened the scoring early in the second quarter with a 5 yard TD reception from Queen Elizabeth’s Jason Dailey to give the “North” a quick lead. Before the half the “South” could only muster a single point off the toe of Bishop Grandin’s Gary McCaffrey. The second half saw Lines score again, this time on a 61 yard flea flicker from Grande Prairie’s James Dyer who caught a lateral from Dailey before tossing the bomb to Lines.
The “South” then answered with two quick TD’s. One on a Rod Bailey of Lester B. Pearson’s fumble recovery in the “North” endzone and the other on a one yard plunge by Bert Church quarterback Eric Korhonen. The “North’ then took the lead once again on a 4 yard run by Wainwright’s Dean Jones, but the “South” quickly followed with a 21 yard TD pass from Korhonen to Grant Prior of Kate Andrew’s. The “South then added a 17 yard McCaffrey FG to round out the scoring. M.V.P. for the “North” was Dailey and for the “South” was Jeff Lewis.
If it wasn’t for bad luck the “North” wouldn’t have any luck at all. Three times it found itself inside the 10 yard line and couldn’t score. The “South” on the other hand capitalized on the only two times it was inside the 10 and added a single and a field goal to win its fourth Senior Bowl in 5 tries 18-6.
Barry McElligott of Bert Church in Airdrie, the “South” M.V.P., and Brooks’ Scott Chomistek scored the majors for the “South” while Kris Indzeoski added two converts, a field goal, and a single to found out the scoring.
The “North” made it interesting late as Salisbury QB Jeff Van Beek hooked up with Lloydminster’s Troy Biever who immediately lateraled to Salisbury’s Marc Bennett who rambled 80 yards for the TD. Harry Ainlay’s Ryan Hickey was named as the “North’s” M.V.P. for his outstanding play at linebacker.
NO. NAME POS. HGT. WGT. SCHOOL TEAM HOMETOWN
1 Marshal Broom K/P 6’2 155 Notre Dame Calgary
5 Kyle Brick SB 6’3 205 McNally/Lacombe Calgary
7 Andrew Buckley QB 6’0 185 Rundle College Calgary
10 Jimmy Underdahl QB 6’0 180 Notre Dame Calgary
11 Denzel Morrison RB 6’0 195 Bishop O’Byrne Calgary
12 Mark Black QB 5’11 225 Highwood High River
15 Aaron Rommele SB 6’1 170 Willow Creek Claresholm
17 Michael Schmidt DB 6’0 180 Western Canada Calgary
20 Jimmy Ralph SB 5’9 173 Raymond Raymond
21 Nicholas Bussiere DB 6’3 160 Notre Dame Calgary
22 Ryan Koyzan DB 5’11 170 John G. Diefenbaker Calgary
24 Jeffery Schidlowsky RB 5’10 180 Western Canada Calgary
25 Cameron Mundle RB 5’9 169 Dr. E.P. Scarlett Calgary
27 Ryan Hryn SB 5’9 170 Brooks Brooks
32 Daniel Ruddy DB 6’1 170 Henry Wise Wood Calgary
33 Alex Shackleton DB 5’9 155 Bowness Calgary
34 Connor Ralph RB 5’10 225 Raymond Raymond
35 Anthony Anderson LB 6’0 205 Medicine Hat Medicine Hat
42 Vince Greco DB 5’11 176 Notre Dame Calgary
43 Dylan Willoughby DB 6’2 165 L.C.I. Lethbridge
44 Jared Hildebrandt DL 6’3 265 Lord Beaverbrook Calgary
45 Sean McEwen OL 6’3 285 Notre Dame Calgary
50 Alexander van Olm LB 6’2 205 Western Canada Calgary
51 Cyril Iwanegbe LB 5’10 180 Brooks Brooks
52 Colin Smithwick DL 5’10 215 Henry Wise Wood Calgary
53 Dylan Erfle DL 6’2 260 Medicine Hat Medicine Hat
54 Owen Sieben DL 6’2 200 Raymond Raymond
55 Meldrick Bigstony OL 6’0 265 Canmore Canmore
56 Tylen Lewis LB 5’10 165 Notre Dame Calgary
57 Jesse Palmer LB 6’2 205 Cochrane Cochrane
58 Tyler Scott OL 5’10 270 Notre Dame Calgary
62 Kelsey Pellerin-Isbister OL 6’1 245 Henry Wise Wood Calgary
64 Justin Studer OL 6’4 270 McCoy Medicine Hat
65 Taylor Ross OL 6’5 280 Medicine Hat Medicine Hat
66 Clinton Reeder OL 6’4 335 Lord Beaverbrook Calgary
70 Jacob Williams DB 5’9 150 St. Francis Calgary
77 Keven Blencowe LB 5’10 195 St. Francis Calgary
82 Benjamin Lawrence SB 5’7 155 Cochrane Cochrane
88 Cody Chipman SB 6’4 220 Cardston Cardston
92 Riley Horvath DL 6’4 218 Catholic Central Lethbridge
95 Greg Hannah DL 6’0 268 Crescent Heights Medicine Hat
99 Daniel Lamola DL 6’4 205 Notre Dame Calgary
HEAD COACH:Dustin Ralph, Raymond
ASSISTANTS: Byron Pierson, Cardston Mike Nightingale, Catholic Central
Clayton Masikewich, Notre Dame Peter McMahon, Dr. E.P. Scarlett
David Miller, St. Mary’s Ken Polson, Cochrane
ATHLETIC THERAPIST:Naomi Hanon EQUIPMENT MANAGER: Allan Naylor
ASSISTANT MANAGER:Bobi Broadbent
NO. NAME POS. HGT. WGT. SCHOOL TEAM HOMETOWN
1 Tyree Malcolm RB 6’0 183 Ross Sheppard Edmonton
5 Christian Gottenbos WR 5’11 165 Spruce Grove Spruce Grove
7 Landyn Vick SB 5’10 170 Harry Ainlay Edmonton
10 Tanner Doll LB 6’0 215 St. Albert St. Albert
11 Jordan Olson QB 6’2 172 Jasper Place Edmonton
12 Stas Bessmertniy RB 5’11 165 Hunting Hills Red Deer
15 Taylor Yaremchuk QB 5’11 175 Bev Facey Sherwood Park
17 Connal Downing SB 6’1 190 Peace River Peace River
20 Brandon Foster DB 5’11 190 Harry Ainlay Edmonton
21 Adam Laurensse DB 6’4 165 Bev Facey Sherwood Park
22 Colton Ballou DB 6’3 195 Harry Ainlay Edmonton
24 Ryan Smith WR 5’8 155 Bev Facey Sherwood Park
25 Tyler Lewis DB 6’0 190 Hunting Hills Red Deer
27 Geoffrey Bekavac DB 6’0 155 Bev Facey Sherwood Park
32 Stephan Paleniuk RB 6’3 200 McNally Edmonton
33 Michael Hansen LB 6’2 202 Jasper Place Edmonton
34 Franklin Marion RB 6’0 200 Salisbury Sherwood Park
35 Nik Whalen LB 6’0 185 Jasper Place Edmonton
42 Matthew Hudema DB 6’0 190 Bev Facey Sherwood Park
43 Ryan Doram DB 6’1 176 McNally Edmonton
44 Braden Schram LB 6’4 230 Peace River Peace River
45 Brett Morrow LB 6’2 212 Lloydminster Lloydminster
52 Colton Cardinal DL 6’0 240 Camrose Camrose
53 Ashton Batt OL 6’2 272 St. Joseph’s Grande Prairie
54 Spencer Maisonneuve DL 6’0 235 Salisbury Sherwood Park
55 Cole McCormick DL 6’4 225 Lloydminster Lloydminster
57 Jordan Filippelli OL 6’7 275 Salisbury Sherwood Park
58 Lincoln Untereiner OL 6’1 300 Salisbury Sherwood Park
60 Steven Wuori DL 6’4 290 Cold Lake Cold Lake
62 Quinn Glanz OL 6’7 295 Salisbury Sherwood Park
64 Andrew Boisvert OL 6’2 262 Salisbury Sherwood Park
65 Taylor Frankiw OL 6’3 284 Bev Facey Sherwood Park
66 Jordan Arkko OL 6’3 305 Harry Ainlay Edmonton
70 Matthew Southwick DB 6’1 170 Peace River Peace River
77 Jonathan Heidebrecht K/P 5’10 150 Camrose Camrose
80 Theoren Long WR 5’8 155 Salisbury Sherwood Park
82 Jordan Garside SB 5’9 160 Harry Ainlay Edmonton
88 Tyler Henry WR 5’10 185 Camrose Camrose
92 Leif Davidson DL 6’3 195 Holy Rosary Lloydminster
95 Nathan Winchester DL 6’4 250 St. Albert St. Albert
99 Marcus Goods DL 6’2 280 Jasper Place Edmonton
HEAD COACH: Danny Boily, Harry Ainlay
ASSITANT COACHES:Brock Dermott, Salisbury Trevor Prichard/Shawn Allison, St. Josephs
Adam Belanger, Camrose Vince Orieux, Holy Rosary
Senny Leung, McNally Chris Friskie, Peace River
ATHLETIC THERAPIST: Nicole Lemke EQUIPMENT MANAGER: Allan Naylor
ASSISTANT MANAGERS:Jamison Enger
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