By: Mike Still (@mikestill94)
This past Monday, the Winnipeg Rifles unveiled their list of commits for the 2020 season. Due to COVID-19, there was no formal rookie camp, therefore meaning that past performance mattered more than ever. Below you will find information on a number of notable additions from each side of the ball. For the complete list of recruits, please click here.
Quarterback depth addressed
Head coach Geordie Wilson and his staff identified a key need with this year’s recruiting class: quarterback depth.
Fourth-year gunslinger Riley Naujoks — who had the best season of his CJFL career in 2019 with 302 passing yards per game and 2118 yards overall — is expected to return. His status past 2020 is uncertain however. Teams such as the Calgary Dinos and Manitoba Bisons were interested in his services this offseason , and with that in mind, it made sense for the squad to invest in the future.
On paper, this group of quarterbacks — which includes six 2020 recruits — are the best talent-wise that the team has had under Wilson. The major question will be how many stick at the pivot position and how many, if any at all, are moved to other spots down the line. At this time, the plan is for every player to get a look under centre.
“We believe there are a number [of commits] that can develop into good quarterbacks in our league,” Wilson said. “We will cross the bridge later on as to what happens moving forward [with the group].”
Perhaps the biggest addition the team made at quarterback was Manitoba Major Junior Football League (MMJFL) alum Bryson McNeil. The even-keeled veteran of the Transcona Nationals/East Side Eagles is fresh off of an MMJFL three-peat and brings with him a winning mentality, coupled with a wealth of understanding thanks offensive guru Barry Berard.
“He’s great,” McNeil said of his time learning under Berard.
“We’ll always text and he’ll break down stuff for me, and that’s the main thing. He’s so fundamental about everything. He breaks down everything and is all about the small things. He brings out the best things about you and pushes you to be a better player.”
The remaining crop of pivots in this year’s recruiting class come courtesy of the Winnipeg High School Football League (WHSFL).
The key word to describe the WHSFL additions is versatility.
In Fort Frances’ Brady Meeks, Murdoch Mackay’s Carter Kutzan and Oak Park’s Thomas Hubbard, the team has three multi-faceted players who can make plays with both their arm and legs. In Kelvin’s Daniel Moroz, Winnipeg gets an intelligent passer (3.5 GPA) with tons of upside, while St. Paul’s alum Anthony Zarow — who also had interest from the MMJFL’s St. James Rods — brings a winning mindset.
Meeks is one of six Muskies that will be on the Rifles’ roster in 2020, showcasing the talent that has come out of Ontario in recent years. This past season he led Fort Frances to their first-ever WHSFL title, recording over 1600 all-purpose yards and 19 touchdowns while also being named the Division 3 Most Outstanding Player.
“We really wanted to change what football looked like in our town,” Meeks noted of his experience with the Muskies. “I’m proud to say I think we made a difference.”
While Meeks — a smaller, shiftier athlete — hasn’t specifically been told where he’ll be playing this season, the assumption is that he’ll suit up at quarterback. If it turns out that the squad needs help in other areas, he’ll be an asset, as he has previous experience as a running back and could be used as a scatback.
Kutzan — who stands at 6’0″, 190 — presents a similar skill set to that of Meeks, but is perhaps the more polished of the two throwers, depending on who you ask. He had just under 1500 all-purpose yards and 14 scores in 2019, helping the Clansmen make a successful transition back to the Division 1 level. Much like Meeks, he’s the type of player who can be utilized at multiple positions.
Hubbard — a Division 1 quarterback — had six passing touchdowns a year ago but also lined up at receiver. His strong football IQ will be a benefit wherever he lines up.
Moroz, who’s 6’1″, 170, also played at the Division 1 level in 2019, and was the starting quarterback for a pass-heavy Kelvin team for multiple seasons. The former WHSFL Rookie of the Year was second in Division 1 in passing yards last year with 1485, and received excellent tutelage under former Rifle and current Clippers offensive coordinator Eric Matthews.
“Daniel is a smart, mature football player. He has natural leadership skills and is one of the hardest working kids I’ve encountered,” noted Matthews.
“On the field, he’s a true gamer. He enters junior football with a tremendous amount of experience behind centre, which should translate into a productive career with the Rifles.”
The rich get richer at receiver
Without a doubt, one of Winnipeg’s biggest strengths last season was their talent and versatility at the receiver position.
Local product and Kamloops transfer Timmy Solypa (fourth-year eligibility) had a successful return back home, finishing seventh in the PFC with 475 yards and a score, while third-year Jake Roger — who made immense strides in 2019 — also finished in the top ten with 391 yards and two majors.
Additionally, third-year Luke McMillan — one of the nicest men you’ll ever meet off the field — also had 241 yards and is primed for an all-star calibre year in 2020, while fifth-year Eric Klein and third-year Sheycoy Selent were also playmakers.
Losing Tyler Hodgson to the UBC Thunderbirds and Mathe Mitayango to the Bishop’s Gaiters certainly hurts, however with Solypa and Klein’s size, along with Selent’s speed and Roger and McMillan’s high catch radius and fearlessness in traffic, there isn’t likely to be a drop-off.
Couple that with a spectacular crop of recruits and the team will be more than fine.
Among the Rifles’ list of commits at receiver are four former WHSFL champions in Miciah Stone (Miles Mac), Carson Noga (Fort Frances), Riley Ho (Vincent Massey WPG), and Luke Cameron-Brandstrom (St. Paul’s). The team also secured the services of dual-sport star Liam Stephenson (Kelvin) and jack-of-all-trades playmaker Luc Rodrigues (Grant Park).
Stone, Cameron-Brandstrom, Noga and Rodrigues are all smaller, shifter targets with a good combination of speed and reliability. Ho and Stephenson on the other hand, provide the Rifles with some size.
Stone, who models his game around Julian Edelman, is a consummate teammate. He was a huge reason why the Buckeyes were able to win the CTV Bowl in 2019 — their first championship since 2005 — recording 321 receiving yards and six touchdowns, while Cameron-Brandstrom is fresh off of an ANAVETS Bowl win with the Crusaders and, along with Stone, was on Team Manitoba’s U18 squad last season.
Noga will be re-united with his high school pivot Brady Meeks, which could reap rewards for the program in the long-run. The pair connected for 351 yards and five majors in 2019, and were particularly dangerous in Fort Frances’ playoff run.
Rodrigues was all over the field for the Pirates in his senior year, offering up his skills as a pass-catcher, running back and quarterback. He has excellent game speed and is fearless going for the football.
Ho — who stands at 6’1″ — was one of Massey’s best players in their 2018 ANAVETS Bowl win over St. Paul’s and finished his senior year with a team-leading 202 yards receiving in six games. He’s also a capable return specialist and physical blocker.
Arguably the most intriguing addition to Winnipeg’s receiving corps in 2020 is Liam Stephenson. Standing at 6’5″, 220 pounds, he stands a good chance at replacing the big-bodied Tyler Hodgson at slotback/h-back if the team opts to go for a similar look offensively with new coordinator Marsh Burnett-Joseph.
“Liam is an extremely hard-working, coachable and competitive individual,” added Matthews of his former receiver.
“He has tremendous size and athleticism that should allow him to help the Rifles at a multitude of positions.”
Promising crop of linebackers will have room to grow
Winnipeg’s linebacker group has been a constant force over the last number of years.
With fifth-year Cole Sneesby (fifth in the PFC with 46 tackles, tied for third with 3.5 sacks) and fourth-year Stephen Hart (24 tackles in five games), along with rising stars such as fourth-year Barrett Mueller and third-years Thomas Moline and Tyler Bueckert, the position looks sound entering 2020.
You can never have too much depth though, and the program has continued to build with the likes of Joshua Paulic (Dakota), Ethan Papineau (Dakota) Brandon Palichuk (St. Norbert) and Colten Allen (Fort Frances).
Paulic and Papineau were two huge reasons why the Lancers were able to post their best-ever regular season finish at the Division 1 level in 2019. The former had 50 tackles, two sacks and an interception, while the latter — who will be making the transition to linebacker — was a stud on the defensive line, finishing with 47 tackles and eight sacks.
Papineau has plenty of upside, having been courted by the Mount Allison Mounties in the AUS previously and is also a beast in the weight room, which translates on the field.
“I just like to get in the backfield and hit as many people as possible,” he said prior to the start of his senior season.
“I keep my motor running, I stay low and I punch guys in the mouth.”
On top of the pair of Lancers, Palichuk, who stands at 5’11”, 205 pounds, was a two-way machine during his time with the Celtics. The middle linebacker led the team with 43 tackles a year ago and brings plenty of physicality to the roster, while Allen was Fort Frances’ Most Outstanding Defensive Player a season ago (66 tackles, a sack, two forced fumbles, one interception).
Wright, Hirst, Safiniuk highlight additions in the secondary
Much like the linebackers group, Winnipeg has plenty of depth in the secondary. Veterans Troy Wilson, Zach Wood, Jake Richardson and Domenic Horvath anchor the group, along with key additions last year in Alex Minor, Keyshawn Gaskin and JoJo Funk-Clements, among others.
The new signees for 2020 include ANAVETS Bowl champions AJ Wright and Isaiah Hirst from St. Paul’s, along with Interlake Thunder alum Carter Safiniuk, who has spent the last few two years with the storied Langley Rams program in BC.
Wright — the relative of Trevor, another former Crusader standout — is a physical halfback who can also step up in the run game. The provincial team alum’s tenacity and capable tackling abilities (22 total last year) make him an immediate asset.
“I bring a lot of intensity,” Wright said prior to the start of the 2019 season.”
“I like to do a lot of meathead stuff. I just like to hit for hit for no reason sometimes.”