By: Mike Still (@mikestill94)
Feature photo: Des Catellier readies for a snap. Photo by Chantal Zdan.
Last Wednesday, Manitoba and Regina faced off in both team’s only pre-season contest of 2018. For the Bisons, it was an opportunity to see what a number of young, promising players could do, with more than a handful of starters staying home to rest up. Below are five thoughts from the contest in the Queen City.
Catellier comes up clutch
With Scott Borden Jr. unavailable, Des Catellier was given the first half to show what he could do, and, essentially lock into the starting quarterback duties for the Bisons. He didn’t disappoint, going 11-of-16 for 159 yards, with two touchdowns.
Catellier’s only big mistake was a second quarter red zone interception that negated a possible Manitoba touchdown. Aside from that, he was excellent. What was particularly impressive was his poise, as, after throwing the costly pick, he came back and drove the team 53 yards in just 1:20, finding veterans Riley Harrison and Jesse Walker for receptions of 32 and eight yards, respectively, the latter of which was his second touchdown pass of the day. Catellier’s first passing touchdown came on a tremendous opening drive that took up 83 yards — with four different receivers getting involved — including Macho Bockru, who caught the seven yard major.
Jamie Ybarra Jr.: From Panama to the Bisons
Just mere weeks ago, Jamie Ybarra Jr. was enjoying his time with Team Canada during the flag football world championships, and wasn’t necessarily considering a return to tackle football — especially at the university level. But when Borden Jr. was unavailable, the Bisons needed a third quarterback, and the former member of the De Anza Dons (community college in Cupertino, California), Vancouver Island Raiders (BCFC) and Winnipeg Rifles (PFC), got the call.
Ybarra Jr. joined the team on Aug. 16, giving him just over a week to practice with the team. With the squad down 32-18 in the fourth quarter, he got his chance to shine, going 6-of-10 for 82 yards while also helping to engineer two scoring drives.
The incredible part of Ybarra’s story is that he nearly had has football career ended while playing for the Raiders last year, after passing out due to a blood clot just five days before the season started. With Catellier and Ybarra Jr. making an impact, as well as the athleticism and playmaking abilities of Jonathan Remple and Borden Jr., a position of concern has quickly become a major positive for the herd.
Three-headed monster returns?
In 2015, Manitoba had a dangerous running attack with Rookie of the Year Jamel Lyles, shifty Alex Christie and powerful Cam Fox all threats to make big plays. They quickly earned the moniker of the “three headed monster.” That monster may be making a return in 2018, but this time with different athletes complementing Lyles, in second year power back Somto Anyadike and former CJFL All-Canadian Victor St. Pierre-Laviolette.
With Lyles not making the trip, the above mentioned duo went to work, recording a combined 132 yards rushing. Anyadike — who showed flashes of brilliance in 2017 before going down with a gruesome elbow injury — ran downhill violently, while St. Pierre-Laviolette, a former member of the Regina Thunder, displayed his explosiveness.
Fellow running backs Demi Adeleye-Olusae and Brandon “the terminator” O’Connor also made their presence felt, with the former using great vision and speed and the latter registering an impressive fourth quarter touchdown where he broke a few tackles.
Plenty of depth at defensive back
With starters Marcel Arruda-Welch and Arjay Shelley not making the trip, a pair of freshmen got their chance to step up, in rangy six-foot-three corners Stephen Adamopoulos (St. Paul’s), and Markos Bockru (Minnesota Crookston). They were thrown into the deep end right away, facing former Hec Crighton winner Noah Picton, but stayed composed. Both players got their hands on multiple balls and displayed high levels of physicality.
Showing the kickers some love
Punters/kickers Brad Mikoluff and Matt Riley typically don’t get talked about unless they make a big kick or a big mistake. In this game, it was the latter. Mikoluff, who was a Canada West All-Star at kicker last year, has been booming punts all through camp, thanks in part to some sage advice that he received during the summer from Justin Medlock of the Blue Bombers. He averaged close to 40 yards on his punts and also netted a 17-yard field goal.
Riley — who is traditionally a punter and hadn’t kicked a field goal in game action in close to six years — wowed everyone in attendance in Regina late in the fourth quarter when he blasted a 52-yard field goal. He also averaged 40.7 yards per punt. Suffice to say the two veterans should be nothing short of reliable this year.