BC High School Football returns again this year for the SUBWAY Bowl Championships at BC Place with five games on championship Saturday, which includes the Grade 8 Division, the Jr. AA and Jr. AAA Divisions, and the Sr. AA and Sr. AAA Divisions.
For most teams this is a dream come true as many of the players might never get another chance or opportunity to ever play at the home of the BC Lions again.
Say what you will, it’s been an interesting day of High School Football and much credit goes to the volunteers who make this so successful.
Grade 8
The Grade 8 final saw Notre Dame play Vancouver College, but the last meeting saw the Notre Dame Jugglers win the Grade 8 title in 2012.
This game saw getting four touchdowns from running back Jude Buchanan in an impressive win over the Vancouver College Fighting Irish capping a perfect 9-0 season for Notre Dame.
Junior Varsity
Following an impressive season and for many it was a first the Nanaimo District Islanders won their school’s first-ever high school football championship – at any age!!
They handily defeated their crosstown rivals, the John Barsby Bulldogs, 23-0 letting NDSS scored the game’s first touchdown, capping a drive with a six-yard run by Anthony Comas six minutes before the break.
Junior Varsity Triple A
Lord Tweedsmuir Panthers keep rolling with a remarkable end to the storybook season as a senior varsity Triple-A title contender in High School Football in the area posting a 17-14 victory.
The opening half produced eight turnovers pretty much split down the middle, Lord Tweedsmuir took a 10-0 lead into the halftime lockers.
Senior AA Championship
The game that many in Delta were talking about was the Senior Varsity AA where the Seaquam Seahawks were facing the Vernon Panthers who got through the interior school pairings.
Rather than being the Seaquam squad and others, it could have been called “The Philpot Bowl” as both brothers were simply outstanding from the opening kick-off to the final buzzer.
Seaquam Head Coach Jerry Mulliss, set to retire (well maybe) after 49 plus years of coaching and if you ask him his life couldn’t be any better.
He mentioned to the players prior to the game that it was there’s to win and if they were going to do it – now was the time!!
It’s a long trip and twice as long going back home, but the program continues to grow for the Panthers and for a team playing in their first-ever senior varsity provincial football final, it’s impressive.
Mulliss at the young age of 70 guided his squad to an impressive win in what many say will be his last coaching “gig” in his long career – others say he’s not finished yet.
One might think that anyone could have guided this team to a championship win, but not if you ask the players and other coaches at the school, cause it’s his team and his alone.
On only the second play of the game Jalen Philpot marched down field for a 48-yard gain, setting up his one-yard TD run.
Seaquam saw everyone step up and march down field to take a 21-0 lead at the half and 28-0 before Vernon’s Player of the Year and tight-end Ben Hladik got his team on the scoreboard with 33 seconds left in the third.
This after seeing QB Thomas Hyett throw a a 13-yard pass to march in for the major and getting the Panthers on the board.
This allowed Vernon some momentum with ensuring drives moving the ball down field, but try as they might they came up short on the scoreboard and a long trip home.
This was a game that players of both sides will remember and remember their names as you could possibly see some of these boy’s in the pro’s down the road.
Thanks to BC High School Football on putting on an impressive day of exciting football at BC Place.
