CFC25 Small School Rankings (8): MB, SK and NB finals promise to provide drama

The list continues to dwindle as playoff hopes and dreams are dashed across the country.

We begin in Manitoba where we’ve been granted our playoff dreams of a stellar matchup in the DII provincial finals. Nothing has stood in the way of Vincent Massey and Sturgeon Heights this season with both programs running the table, but only one can finish with a flawless record. Vincent Massey punched their ticket to the finals with a dominant 53-8 victory over Springfield, while Sturgeon Heights glided past Miles Mac by a score of 38-0. This now sets up a war between the two juggernauts at IG Field on Wednesday night where the Vikings will be looking to repeat as champions, and Sturgeon Heights will be hungry to take home their first provincial banner since 2015. We can’t wait to see what type of performance these two programs put on for the crowd because it promises to be a good one.

We now head to Saskatchewan where the 5A provincial finals will feature a juicy rematch of last year’s semifinals. Weyburn once again proved why the Rural region is so feared with a spectacular 44-2 victory over Greenall out of Regina, who found themselves on the losing end once again after failing to stop the Eagles in last year’s finals. Weyburn are now preparing for another rematch against Bishop J. Mahoney, who fought their way to defeat Aden Bowman by a score of 7-0 to claim the Saskatoon city championship. It went down to the wire a year ago when Weyburn persevered to hand Bishop J. Mahoney a 22-13 defeat in the semis, and we are expecting another photo finish with the provincial title on the line this time around. It would be the second straight provincial banner for Weyburn, meanwhile Bishop J. Mahoney are looking to reclaim the title for the first time since 2018.

REGISTER NOW FOR THE CFC TRYOUT AND SHOWCASE (BORN 2004-2012)

We flip our attention to Quebec where we’ve got a final four showdown between the top programs in Juvenile DII. There were no surprises in the quarterfinals with College Laval, College Bourget, Saint-Joseph and Dalbe-Viau all handling business this past week to keep their Bol d’Or hopes alive. All four programs have taken turns looking like the team to beat this year, but now there’s no where left to hide with College Laval ready to take on Saint-Joseph in their first meeting of 2022, while College Bourget will be looking to change the narrative against Dalbe-Viau, who handed them their only loss during the regular season. No matter who walks out on the other side of the semifinal battlefield, we are guaranteed a fantastic matchup in the Bol d’Or next week.

It’s time to breakdown all the playoff implications in Alberta with the provincial playdowns now set in stone. After making history last week with their victory over Cochrane, unfortunately George McDougall couldn’t bottle up the magic against top ranked Holy Trinity Academy, who punched their ticket to the playdowns with a 48-21 victory. They now are getting ready to take on Medicine Hat this weekend in the Tier II provincial quarterfinals, who they defeated way back in their first game of the season by a score of 47-7. On the other side of the bracket will be reigning DII champions St. Joseph’s, who were once again crowned Mighty Peace Conference champions with their 15-0 victory over Sexsmith. The Celtics are now game planning for a matchup against Bellerose in the provincial quarterfinals, who finished the season winless in the Edmonton Metro top division playing programs like CFC50 Harry Ainlay and Salisbury. Turning our attention to Tier III, it came as no shock that Holy Rosary once again snatched the Wheatland League trophy with an easy 37-7 triumph over St. Paul. The Raiders now have all eyes focused on repeating as Tier III provincial champions with a quarterfinals matchup against Stettler this weekend, who enter the playdowns ranked as the second seed in the bracket with a perfect 9-0 record. Lastly don’t forget about Cochrane, who will be competing for the Tier I regional based provincial title for the first time with a battle against Henry Wise Wood in the quarterfinals.

CFC100 CLASS OF 2023 3RD EDITION

We’ve got a great provincial finals showdown in New Brunswick with an Acadie Bowl rematch on tap. Mathieu-Martin have looked like the team to beat all season, and once again proved why in the semifinals with a 36-5 victory of Sainte-Anne. They now are getting ready to take on their rivals from L’Odyssee, who earned their way to the finals with a close 28-25 win over Bernice MacNaughton in the other semifinal. These two programs have met 12 times in the Acadie Bowl dating back to 2007, and Mathieu-Martin had suffered six straight losses until changing the script this season with a surprising 38-3 blowout. Can they find a way to repeat their dominant performance? Or will L’Odyssee capture the spirit of their past success with the provincial title hanging in the balance? This will be the first time these two rivals have met in the finals.

It’s finally playoff time in BC with the AA Varsity bracket locked and loaded. Robert Bateman will enter as the team to beat after completing their perfect regular season with a 46-6 victory over Ballenas. They will be joined by Langley, Vernon and College Heights with byes straight to the quarterfinals, while our only other ranked program John Barsby get ready to test their skills against Ballenas in the wildcard round. If the past is any indication, John Barsby will be the heavy favourites heading into this playoff showdown after defeating Ballenas by a score of 45-15 during the regular season, but anything can happen in the postseason. It’s going to be a thrilling race to watch with every team dreaming of raising the banner at BC Place in December.

Lastly we wrap things up in Ontario where a spot at the OFSAA Festival is on the line with Thomas A. Stewart ready to take on Crestwood one last time in the COSSA finals. These two met a couple weeks ago with Thomas A. Stewart walking away with the 28-3 victory, but it’s never easy to completely eliminate Crestwood who have made five appearances at the OFSAA Festival before. The last and only time Thomas A. Stewart have made it to the big dance was back in 2018, while Crestwood’s last appearance came in 2017.

PAST RANKINGS: WEEK 1WEEK 2WEEK 3WEEK 4WEEK 5WEEK 6 WEEK 7

# Last Week School/Team Mascot City Prov. Conf. Rec. Non-Conf. Rec Results
1 1 Holy Trinity Academy Knights Okotoks AB 0-0 8-1 W 48-21 vs. George McDougall
2 2 Robert Bateman Timberwolves Abbotsford BC 7-0 3-0 W 46-6 vs. Ballenas
3 3 Vincent Massey Vikings Brandon MB 9-0 0-0 W 53-8 vs. Springfield
4 4 Sturgeon Heights Huskies Winnipeg MB 9-0 0-0 W 38-0 vs. Miles Mac
5 9 Weyburn Eagles Weyburn SK 8-1 0-0 W 44-2 vs. Greenall
6 5 College Laval Maraudeurs Laval QC 8-1 0-0 W 31-8 vs. Roger-Comtois
7 7 Collège Bourget Voltigeurs Rigaud QC 8-1 0-0 W 42-7 vs. Jacques-Rousseau
8 8 Holy Rosary Raiders Lloydminster AB 7-0 2-1 W 37-7 vs. St. Paul
9 12 Dalbé-Viau Aigles D’Or Lachine QC 8-2 0-0 W 21-14 vs. Estacades
10 13 St. Joseph Celtics Grande Prairie AB 5-0 3-2 W 15-0 vs. Sexsmith
11 11 Séminaire Saint-Joseph Vert et Or Trois-Rivieres QC 8-1 0-0 W 43-8 vs. Saint-Georges
12 14 Bishop J. Mahoney Saints Saskatoon SK 7-0 1-0 W 7-0 vs. Aden Bowman
13 16 Langley Thunderbirds Langley BC 6-1 2-0 W 49-8 vs. Ear Marriott
14 10 George McDougall Mustangs Airdrie AB 7-2 2-0 L 48-21 vs. Holy Trinity Academy
15 6 Greenall Griffins Balgonie SK 7-1 0-1 L 42-7 vs. Weyburn
16 15 Cochrane Cobras Cochrane AB 7-2 0-0 BYE
17 17 Yorkton Raider Gridders Yorkton SK 6-2 0-0 FINISHED
18 18 Thomas A. Stewart Griffins Peterborough ON 6-0 0-0 W 49-10 vs. St. Peter
19 20 Central Cyclones Moose Jaw SK 5-2 0-0 FINISHED
20 21 Vernon Panthers Vernon BC 2-0 3-1 BYE
21 22 Mathieu-Martin Matadors Dieppe NB 8-1 0-0 W 35-6 vs. Sainte-Anne
22 23 John Barsby Bulldogs Nanaimo BC 4-3 0-2 W 40-0 vs. Windsor
23 19 Académie les Estacades Aigles Trois-Rivières QC 7-3 0-0 L 21-14 vs. Dalbe-Viau
24 25 Crestwood Mustangs Peterborough ON 5-1 0-0 W 29-14 vs. Holy Cross
25 UR L’Odyssee Olympiens Moncton NB 8-1 0-0 W 28-25 vs. Bernice MacNaughton

Advocating for football prospects one story at a time.

Comments are closed.