Half of Ottawas OVFL teams perfect at 6-0

By Josh Bell

With the Ontario Varsity Football League nearing the conclusion of its regular season, it’s become clear that there’s one type of team to watch out for: Ottawa.

While neither of the two local squads east and west of Bank St. actually carry their city’s name in their monicker, junior football clubs from across the province have learned to fear matchups against the Cumberland Panthers and Myers Riders.

Having captured their club’s first title at the (senior) Varsity level last year, the Riders have showed no signs of slowing down this season, posting their league’s lone perfect record at 6-0.

“I think we have an excellent chance right now,” signals Riders coach Max Palladino, whose club has already nailed down home-field advantage throughout their conference playoffs with two regular season games left to play. “The games we have left, they’ll be tough, but they were tough last year too, and that was when they said we had no chance.”

Mathew Duffy has admirably stepped into the quarterback shoes vacated by Nick Gorgichuk, now a Carleton University Raven, posting a 224.5 QB rating while completing 96 of 138 passes for 1,855 yards with 20 touchdowns and 4 interceptions.

Returning receiver Jaeger Prot is averaging over 100 yards per game, while the Rider defence hasn’t allowed more than eight points in any contest since the team’s season-opening 51-18 win.

“I tell the kids from the beginning of the year that with the talent we have on this team, they should win a championship,” adds Palladino, whose squad has outscored opponents by a combined 281-50. “The only way we don’t win a championship is that we beat ourselves – that’s the only way I see us losing.”

Both local JV teams unbeaten
A major showdown looms large for the OVFL’s lone undefeated Junior Varsity teams as 6-0 Cumberland and 6-0 Myers will meet on July 12 at Nepean Sportsplex.
The Panthers bested the Riders in their regular season meeting last season, but Myers turned the tables in the post-season to knock Cumberland out en route to an appearance in the league final.

“I want it to be our turn this year,” emphasizes Panthers JV coach Warren Steeves. “I think we have a good chance, we’re athletic, we’re a physical football team, I think we are a talented group of kids and coaches.”

Facing an opponent with multiple rushing threats – Myers boasts four runningbacks who have carried for over 350 yards in six contests – will be his team’s biggest challenge to date this season, Steeves recognizes.

“I have a ton of respect for Myers,” he underlines. “They are very well coached and they always have a number of good players that buy into their system. For us to beat them, we just have to execute.”Bantam OVFL entries pound the ground
With a powerful ground game led by runningback Kian Williams – who is averaging 19.3 yards per carry for 1,253 in total for six games – the Bantam Panthers have an overtime loss and five wins this season.

Featuring their own standout runningback – Honoreal Iloki, who’s averaging 21.6 yards per carry for 1,337 total – the defending OVFL Bantam-champion Riders sit 5-1 heading into their July 12 showdown with Cumberland.

The Varsity Panthers sit in the middle of the pack at 3-2-1.

Capital’s football spirit rises
Ask coach Palladino the secret to Ottawa clubs’ success in the OVFL and he’ll tell you it comes down to the amount of football played in town.

“With high school and NCAFA, it brings a lot of players into the OVFL,” he explains, saluting the National Capital Amateur Football League in particular for being one of Canada’s biggest and best youth football organizations. “When you get that many kids playing football, you get great talent out of it.”

Palladino hopes that the return of the Ottawa Redblacks to the CFL will spur even greater football participation in the city.

“Hopefully with the Redblacks here, we can get maybe another 10 or 15% across the board of kids who become interested in football and start picking it up at the 10, 11, 12 age group,” says the coach who also led the Myers Jr. Riders for many years until the Quebec Junior Football League team folded in the off-season. “You get that sort of growth and everyone’s going to benefit down the road.”

Palladino highlights Ottawa’s strong tradition of moving players onto university football teams, and outlines the exploits of numerous young local CFLers – such as the Redblacks’ Connor Williams, Edmonton’s Kyle Norris, and Calgary’s Brander Craighead and Tyler Crapigna – who were all playing in the city’s youth football ranks only a short time ago.

“These are all guys who have played on the same (Ottawa) field, in the CFL now,” Palladino underlines. “The kids see that opportunity, and they actually put that extra effort forward. I think that’s what brings a lot of excitement to Ottawa football right now.”