Saskatchewan football could make history with Vanier Cup victory

Allison Bamford has more on Saskatchewan looking for the province's fourth national title of 2025 as the USask Huskies get set for the Vanier Cup this weekend.

For the third straight weekend, a Saskatchewan football team is vying for a national championship.

The Saskatchewan Huskies will kick off against the Montreal Carabins on Saturday in the 2025 Vanier Cup Final – Canadian university football’s national title.

If the Huskies win, they will secure a spot in football history, helping the province complete a quadruple sweep of Canadian championships this year.

No province has ever had teams win the Canadian Bowl, the Vanier Cup, the Grey Cup and the Western Women’s Canadian Football League championship, all in the same year.

“The success we’re having here in the province is not at all that surprising,” said Brian Guebert, executive director of Saskatoon Minor Football.

“We know the quality of coaches that we have from the grassroots level, all the way up to post-secondary levels and the elite teams.”

The winning streak started in June when the Saskatoon Valkyries defeated the Edmonton Arctic Pride 28-0 to take home the team’s fifth-straight WWCFL title.

The Saskatoon Hilltops kept the momentum going this month. The squad beat the Okanagan Sun with a last-minute field goal to clinch the Canadian Bowl, the trophy handed out in the Canadian Junior Football League.

A week later, the Saskatchewan Roughriders bested the Montreal Alouettes to win the 112th Grey Cup – the fifth championship for the franchise.

Now the University of Saskatchewan is left to finish the job, and the Huskies have a chance to do it on home soil, as Regina is hosting this year’s Vanier Cup at Mosaic Stadium.

“I’ve played a lot of football games on this field. Just knowing what it’s going to be like and knowing what the stadium is like, I feel like that contributes to playing here,” said Seth Hundeby, linebacker for the Huskies.

“And staying in Saskatchewan, what more could you ask for?”

The Saskatoon-based team has somewhat of a home-field advantage with many friends and family making the short trip south for the game. But the players say that won’t make it an easy battle against the Carabins.

“There will definitely be some challenges there, but nothing we can’t overcome,” Huskies running back Ryker Frank said.

No matter the outcome, Guebert says it’s been an unforgettable season for the sport, especially after the Grey Cup victory.

“That’s something really special for this province and that just drives the lifeblood of what football is as a culture here,” he said.

Guebert says the passion for football runs deep in Saskatchewan and interest in the sport at all levels continues to grow.

More than 7,000 athletes registered in Saskatoon Minor Football this year, about 700 more than the previous season.

Registration numbers have grown every year over the last decade, according to Guebert, and he doesn’t see that trend changing after the championship performances this season.

“We have such great talent here in the province,” he said.

“As they grow and make themselves a core part of the community, they give back by coaching their own kids, coaching our younger generation and that’s what makes Saskatoon minor football such a special thing.”