THE UNDEFEATED: MCCS’s Redmen face Unity on Thursday in last regular game of season

Mason O’Neill (#21) celebrates his 2nd quarter touchdown with Brix Paraiso in Thursday’s game against Biggar.

By Marcus Day

Maple Creek News

Word is spreading fast about the footballing exploits of Maple Creek Composite School’s Redmen.

It’s not only that they are undefeated this season.

It is about the manner of their victories, the way they blitz opponents with speed, agility, power, and good decision-making.

Their victories so far read 56-14, 57-6, 60-38, 75-6, and 50-12.

When they take the field, there is an expectation of success from fans and team alike.

On Thursday (October 15), the Redmen will play Unity at MCCS grounds in the last regular season game. It starts at 4pm.

Football fans won’t want to miss it.

“We are hoping for a good turnout and a good result,” said Dale Udal, one of four coaches. The others are Landon Bertram, Tyllan Stanley, and Derek Moorhead.

With playoff positioning looming, a good result is essential, and the roar of a large home crowd can make a difference, especially when minds and limbs get tired in the latter stages.

The Redmen compete in the Saskatchewan High Schools Athletic Association’s 2A Conference 1 League, which also features Unity Warriors, Biggar Blazers, and Eatonia Spartans.

Their 5-0 record means they top the 6-A-Side football pool.

On September 11, they opened their campaign with a 56-14 home win against Eatonia, before beating Biggar 57-6 away.

September 24 saw them record their most impressive victory – 60-38 away to their toughest opponents, Unity.

On October 1, they romped to a 75-6 triumph away to Eatonia.

Their latest win was against Biggar at home last Thursday.

Three touchdowns apiece from wide receiver Brix Paraiso and running back Mason O’Neill helped them to a 50-12 win. A seventh touchdown came from Cruz Packard (offensive line).

The News-Times came to the game midway through the second quarter.

It was soon apparent that #20, Paraiso, was a talisman, his speed creating a buzz of expectation in the crowd whenever he had the ball.

O’Neill, #21, also had a great game.

“He was our third string tailback,” said Udal. “Our starting tailback was hurt and the backup tailback was in Calgary, so Mason had to play tailback. He had never played there before and ended up scoring three times.”

An example of the Redmens’ competitive fire this season was provided by Yomi Oyerinde (defensive line), who played much of the game with a suspected broken thumb.

“They played hard,” he said of Biggar. “I think they are just starting out – they are new to the league – so they are pretty good.”

Unity are second in the pool with a 4-1 record, followed by Biggar (1-4); and Eatonia (0-5).

The pool positions point to a mouthwatering clash this week between first and second.

Speaking after the October 8 Biggar game, Udal said the large contingent of Grade 12s was a big factor in Redmen’s success this season.

There was a marked difference in footballing levels between Grade 11 and Grade 12.

“The game slows down, they make better decisions, they execute better, they are usually a little bigger, a little faster and a little stronger. Grade 12 presence on a senior football team is always a big thing.”

He added: “We haven’t carried a lot of Grade 12s the last number of years, so I would say that is the probably the main difference.

“But we also have got a nice combination of some speed, some athletes and some size, and we are having some success this year, so that is nice. We have got to stay healthy.”

Udal said the Redmen didn’t show the best version of themselves in the Biggar game.

“I don’t think that was our A level football, but we will take the wint. We have got to keep getting better. I know the score looks one way, but when we break it down in the film on Monday, we are going to find lots of mistakes. We do film study, we record each game, break down all the plays, and we go over missed assignments and techniques. It is a good teaching tool.”

Over the season Udal has seen improvement.

“You are never going to get perfection out of a team. We just strive to execute every play as well as we can. There were lots of good things on the field today.”

Looking ahead to the Unity game, Udal said his team would have to be at their best to wrap up first place.

“It is a real big game. We know that we are going to have to play better than we did today. They are a little stronger team than the one we beat today.”

After the regular season come the conference playoffs. The #1 seed plays the #4 seed, while the #2 seed plays the #3 seed.

Then the top two seeds go on to the provincial playoff bracket.

“We would like to finish as the first seed going into provincials,” said Udal. “If we do, we are able to host the provincial quarter-final and semi-final and the provincial final; so we have to keep winning. I call it the honey pot draw. We get home field advantage through the provincial playoff draw. Home-field advantage is always big in sport, when you don’t have to get on a bus to travel. Who knows what part of the province you will be going to in provincial playoffs, it could be far north or far east. You can sleep in your own bed at night and get up and play on your home field, it does make a difference.”

Udal said the provincial quarterfinal would be played on a Saturday in the last weekend in October.

The first Saturday of November would see the provincial semifinal, while the provincial final always takes place on the second Saturday in November.

Not that the Redmen are looking too far ahead. Their focus is always on the next game.

“We are not putting the cart before the horse,” said Udal, adding: “We have to keep taking care of business here and winning games, and we will see where it goes.”