Written by: Allie Stanton

September 24, 2017

September 23, 2017. A day that will forever be etched into the memories of anyone involved in the Edmonton Wildcats Organization.

It had been 40 years since the Wildcats had gone face to face with the Hamilton Hurricanes in the Armadale Cup (now known as the Canadian Bowl) in 1977. At the beginning of the evening, the Wildcats honoured the Alumni of the 1977 team and Coach Lazaruk by bringing the players out of the field for pre-game, and off in the distance you could see bright yellow LAZ written in the stands.

This game was different than those of the past. Players were ready to go, they had an energy and buzz that was infectious to those both on and off the field. The first half finished with the score sitting at 22-13 in favour of the Hurricanes. During halftime, the Wildcats recharged and came out of the locker room ready to go.

The second half was LOUD. Fans were electric, and the players and coaches were ready for a win. The score of the second half began at 22-13 for the Hurricanes. As the game continued, so did the Wildcats touchdowns, field goals, and energy. It is a feeling that is truly hard to explain. The fourth quarter started with the Hurricanes ahead with a 30-23 lead, but at 12:30 of the fourth the game became tied with a touchdown and completed field goal. 30-30. At 8:01 of the fourth quarter another touchdown and field goal placed the Wildcats ahead at 37-30. The sideline was on fire, you could feel the emotions of the players, but also of the crowd. 3:13 of the fourth, and the score moves to 40-30 for the Wildcats. Tensions were high, but the energy remained positive. The last minute of play was easily the most memorable. The Wildcats lined up side by side on the field, arms wrapped around each other – they were ready, and they earned this huge win. The game clock ran out, and with that, the Wildcats had won a well-deserved win against the Hamilton Hurricanes. 

This coming Saturday, September 23 the Edmonton Wildcats will be hosting the Hamilton Hurricanes in their only inter-conference game of the season.

It has been 40 years since the Wildcats and the Hurricanes came face to face with each other, since the Wildcats blanked the Hurricanes 28 – 0 in the Armadale Cup. We encourage all Wildcats Alumni to attend Saturday nights game as we take to celebrating the 1977 Wildcats.

For the full Interconference schedule click here.

Brothers; on the field and off. 

Allie Stanton

September 13, 2017

It is no secret that when it comes to football, there is a brotherhood. Teammates that have become like family to each other, and coaches that become father figures. For the Edmonton Wildcats, the brotherhood goes a little bit deeper than the locker room and on the field. With four sets of brothers on the team actively playing and coaching, the Wildcats are in a unique position.

There’s the Lawson brothers, Mackenzie and Carter. At first glance they could be mistaken for twins, but in fact, Mackenzie is two years older. Mackenzie and Carter are close, they do everything together. They live together and even drive to practices and games together. They haven’t always played on the same team, having only previously played together during Mackenzie’s grade nine and twelve years back in their hometown. When it comes to competition and competing against each other they are known to start scrums and hold grudges against one another. Back home there are five brothers, and in the yard, it can get quite competitive playing sports all together. When asked if they enjoy playing football together, both Mackenzie and Carter agreed that it has brought them even closer together – especially since Mackenzie has not been home for the past two years. When asked each other’s strengths and weaknesses there was a bit of hesitation, but Mackenzie was quick to note that Carter is faster and has better hands. But Carter decided to go the other direction, and throw Mackenzie under the bus saying he doesn’t clean very much, but then was eager to say that when it comes to football his brother is the one he would go to when he didn’t understand the plays and credits him with knowing plays  off the top of his head. The best part of having your older brother on the team is that you always have someone who has your back. And just when you thought two Lawson brothers was enough, there is a possibility of a third Lawson brother with an itch to play with the Wildcats next season.

Rasheed and Rashaad Robinson are the Wildcats twins. Affectionately known as Sheed Shaad, these identical twins have always played sports together. When asked if they are competitive with one another, you could see each of their faces light up as if they knew the question was coming their way. They credit this to being twins, and constantly being compared to each other in various situations. They have a lot of fun playing football together, but the downside to that is that they are constantly being mistaken for each other – and this is where the Sheed Shaad nickname comes into play. Rasheed credits himself to being the more laid back twin, saying the Rashaad is much more serious and needs to relax more. When it comes to their future of playing football together, Rasheed and Rashaad know that at some point they may have to play football against one another but they are looking forward to the possibility.

It isn’t very often where teams find themselves with three brothers who are on the active roster. The Olson family lives, breathes and sleeps football. With the oldest brother, Jordan now coaching with the Wildcats and younger brothers Cody and Brandon playing you can really see that football is a family affair. When asked what it’s like coaching his brother’s Jordan says he  has a different approach compared to other coaches on the team,  he finds that you have to be a friend and a coach at the same time. And since Jordan has been specifically in Cody’s position as a Quarterback, he can offer advice in a way that maybe other coaches can’t. For Cody, he finds that Jordan knows how to talk to him, and how to communicate and understand his personality and attitude. Conversations are  a lot easier to have between the two of them. When it comes to competition, with these brothers it seems to be even more heightened. Although Cody and Jordan have never played together, Cody has found that with Brandon that they have become closer because now they can talk about the same things – football. Jordan and Brandon have played together, in their 2013 – 2015 Junior seasons. With Jordan playing Quarterback and Brandon as a Receiver, Jordan found that he always knew what Brandon was going to do on the field, kind of like brotherly telepathy.  Jordan went onto say that when you are in the huddle you are all brothers, but having your brother there with you makes it even more special. When it comes to the younger brother’s downfalls, Jordan is quick to point out that both Cody and Brandon don’t listen to him. He quickly changes gears to note that Cody is fast, and that is beneficial especially when playing Quarterback.  When it comes to Brandon, Jordan says he can be shy but once he starts to open up he becomes a real leader on the field. For Cody, he says he is lucky as Jordan has played Quarterback and has dealt with all of the same scenarios so he is a great mentor for when he is approaching something wrong and always has a positive approach when providing feedback. For the Olson family, football really is all about brotherly love.

The McHale brothers were not available for comment at the time of publication, but they are apart of the brotherhood nonetheless.

When it comes to football, you will always have brothers on your line, your team and on our side. But, having that one person who knows you like others may not makes playing that much more special.

Wildcats Head Coach Darcy Park appointed to U16 Western All-Stars

Allie Stanton

August 31, 2017

On August 16, 2017, Head Coach Darcy Park of the Edmonton Wildcats was appointed as Head Coach of the Football Canada U16 Western All-Stars. This comes after a gold medal performance at the Football Canada U16 Western Challenge, held in Lethbridge this past July 1-8, 2017. The U16 Western All-Stars team will be heading to Texas in January 2018 to battle it out against Team USA at the International Bowl.

The Wildcats Communications volunteer Allie Stanton sat down with Darcy on August 30, to ask him some pressing and not so pressing questions about what this next experience with Football Canada means to him and what he is looking forward to this coming January.

How does being named the Head Coach of the U16 Western Canada All-Stars make you feel?

It’s very exciting, and a nice change. The chance to work with Team Alberta and High School coaches and then winning the tournament in Lethbridge was great and now working and coaching with coaches from across Western Canada is going to be exciting.

What does this team mean for the football program in Alberta and Western Canada?

When you go down to Texas it is a great experience for the players and the coaches. You get treated really well in Texas, and this was before when we were just going down as Team Alberta. And now that we are going down as the Western provinces it means our level of competition and players are going to be that much better, and they are going to be much more excited. Prep time may be scarce leading up to it, but it’s going to be great having people bring their experiences in and see how we can build a team fast.

What is it like coaching in the AT&T Stadium on game day?

It is incredible! I feel like a twelve-year-old again. When you go down there, Football USA treats us like we are in the “big time”. The players get excited to be there, but the coaches get into the coaches room and we are all equally as excited. The big score board is on, and it’s just such a great experience.

With the roster being announced, which players are you excited to work with and coach?

It’s a fantastic roster, and the kids from our area that were chosen and that we are excited about are Eli Hetlinger (Quarterback at Harry Ainlay) and Ajou Ajou who is a Receiver (Brooks, Alberta).  There is also Running Back Jaden Caston (Henry Wise Wood – Calgary, Alberta) who I got to coach when I coached the Alberta Running Backs, watching him develop and grow in the little time we have together is going to be neat, but I also want to see how he will be able to compete at the next level.

What are some of the main differences between American Football and Canadian Football?

The biggest thing is the size of the field, and the number of men on the field so that is something that the skill position players will have to get used to because they don’t have as much time to set up their routes as a receiver.  The no motion rule is something that we have to spend a lot of time hammering into our team because only one player is allowed in motion in American rules, and players cannot be moving towards the line of scrimmage. In Canadian football, we try to move as many guys around as we can.

What food are you looking forward to trying while in Texas?

We have a little restaurant in Arlington, called Papasitto’s has the best Mexican food I have ever had – it’s unreal!  We have gone there a few times before, and I am hoping to get our Football Canada staff there too.

The Wildcats organization is very proud of Coach Park, and we cannot wait to watch him this coming January as his Head Coach journey continues with the U16 Western All-Stars with Football Canada.

The Wildcats first home game of the year is approaching very quickly – this Saturday, Aug 26 at 7 pm at Clarke Stadium  – – 11000 Stadium Rd NW.

We would love to see all of those Wildcats fans out on what looks to be a beautiful Saturday evening.

Ticket Info:

• Season Passes – $40 – – entry to all four home games this season at Clarke Stadium
• Single Game Tickets – $15 – – can be purchased at the gate upon entry
• Children under the age of twelve are free.

We are so close to game day against the Calgary Colts tomorrow in Calgary!

Click here to hear what new Defensive Cooridinator Donny has to say about the new CJFL season!

Well Wildcats fans, we are officially two days away from our first Game Day of the 2017 CJFL season.

This season, we have welcomed fantastic new coaches and one of them is very excited to work with our players and to continue his football career in a new capacity!

Click here to watch what Andrew Jones has to say.