As they prepare for Saturday’s Mitchell Bowl against the Laval Rouge et Or, the 2017 edition of the University of Calgary Dinos football team features a definite Okanagan flavour.
A pair of players on the active roster have roots to Kelowna football, while one of their assistant coaches was involved with the Okanagan Sun for several seasons.
Quarterback Josiah Joseph performed for the Mt. Bouchere Bears and Okanagan Sun, while defensive lineman Matt Carson is a graduate of Kelowna Secondary.
Matt’s father, Paul, has been the Dinos offensive line coach for the past two seasons and is a former executive and assistant coach with the Sun.
Joseph played two seasons with the Sun before enrolling at the U of Calgary in January 2016. The 6-foot-3, 205-pound arts student has dressed for every game and is the backup to starter Adam Sinagra. He has seen extensive duty on short yardage situations.
Joseph came off the bench to rally Calgary to a 51-28 win over Saskatchewan on Sept. 23, completing 11 of 13 passes, two of them for touchdowns, and rushing seven times for 68 yards. During the 2017 season he ran 28 times for 111 yards and two touchdowns, adding 30 of 45 completion for four touchdown passes.
The 6-foot-4, 265 pound Carson, now in his fifth and final year of eligibility, has been a starter and member of the defensive line rotation the entire season. Carson was drafted by the Toronto Argonauts and played in two pre-season games before returning to the Dinos. Carson had 12 tackles, three quarterback sacks and a forced fumble in league play.
The Dinos face the team they lost to in the 2016 Vanier Cup, the Laval Rouge et Or, on Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m. at McMahon Stadium.
Last weekend, the Dinos won the Hardy Cup (Canada West) title defeating the UBC Thunderbirds in a thriller, 44-43, on Niko Di Fonte’s record-setting 59-yard field goal.
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