Junior footballers mull their futures in aftermath of Canadian Bowl loss in B.C.
By Scott Petersen,
Edmonton Journal
Well before the final gun of the final game of the season had sounded, the Edmonton Wildcats received some sage advice.
Longtime Edmonton Eskimos kicker Dave Cutler was a guest speaker at the Canadian Junior Football League’s awards banquet Friday night and made his message clear. No matter the result of the next night’s Canadian Bowl, take a look around the dressing room and soak up the atmosphere and look at the faces because it would be the last time they’d play together as a group.
If he wondered whether his words hit their mark, the players’ post-game comments showed it had.
“It was a hell of a ride, that’s for sure,” said Wildcats defensive lineman Dan Schutte, one of the team’s graduating players. “I played with a bunch of guys I loved. Nothing beats that. Nothing in the world.”
Another grad, defensive back Darryl Henderson, arrived a bit late into the post-game huddle of their 27-26 loss to the Vancouver Island Raiders at Caledonia Park in Nanaimo, B.C. But he made sure his feelings were heard.
“You guys are the best thing to ever happen to me in my life,” he yelled.
“Once a Wildcat, always a Wildcat.”
The list of graduates is a relatively short one for the team. Schutte and Henderson are joined by defensive back Cole Payne, star offensive lineman Terris Paliwoda, defensive lineman Jeremy Paul and linebacker Jean-Marc Jones.
But others will be lost to universities or the pros. The Eskimos will have their eyes on a few Wildcats, including national offensive MVP Tristan Jones, and the graduating Paliwoda.
“I have no idea, it’s too early to tell,” said Jones. “Now I’ll just sit down and see what kind of things open up and figure out what’s best for myself.”
Paliwoda, an all-Canadian, has also drawn interest from the Eskimos and may get a shot at their training camp. If not, there are many universities beating down his door.
“I’m going to sit down with coach Durchik and talk about my future,” said Paliwoda, a dedicated gym rat who’s come a long way in terms of strength and ability since first joining the team. “I would rather go try out with the Eskimos and see what happens after that.”
Other key players will likely be pursued by universities, including quarterback Brendan Maher, linebacker Ryan King, offensive linemen Milton Greyeyes and all-Canadian Greg Hinse, and safety Jeff Hecht. King and Maher both said they expect to return to the Wildcats, while Hinse had to drop from the University of Alberta for academic reasons and hoped to work his way back.
“I’m so proud of these guys,” said Durchik. “That was the toughest loss I’ve ever been in.”
The Wildcats blew out several opponents in their 11-1 season, gaining valuable playing time for their understudies late in games. The importance of that could be seen as early as next season.
As Durchik simply put it, he won’t be rebuilding, but reloading, for another run at the Canadian Bowl in 2007. The strong season just ended should exponentially help his recruiting efforts.
