Fellow offensive lineman Navjot Pooni (left) and 'Birds assistant Ben Griffin support veteran centre Gavin Coakes who showed the emotion of the moment as the Thunderbirds topped the visiting Dinos 23-22 on Homecoming night Sept. 19 in Vancouver. (Photo by Bob Frid property of UBC athletics 2025. All Rights Reserved)
Feature University Football

UBC Football: When veteran centre Gavin Coakes sheds tears of joy, it’s all about the origin story of the Thunderbirds’ heart-and-soul offensive line! Next test comes Friday at Alberta!

By Howard TsumuraVarsityLetters.caVANCOUVER — There were so many positives revealing themselves on the field last Friday at Thunderbird Stadium as part of UBC’s season-saving 23-22 win over the Calgary Dinos.So many, in fact, that we restricted our initial look at the victory from the standpoint of the ‘Birds ability to produce four massive defensive plays […]

It's magic! Even UBC defensive halfback Darrien Brown can't quite put into words what his 11th hour interception might mean in the big picture as the Thunderbirds topped the visiting Calgary Dinos 23-22 on Homecoming night Sept. 19 in Vancouver. (Photo by Bob Frid property of UBC athletics 2025. All Rights Reserved)
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A Sunday Read: In the anatomy of UBC’s breathtaking 23-22 win over Calgary, here’s how four defensive plays from the same needle and thread helped stitch a win and save a season on the brink!

By Howard TsumuraVarsityLetters.caVANCOUVER — So much of the time, the easiest way to gauge the greatness of a football game is to lather in its own gaudy bath of offensive numbers.Yet it seems that the truest gems are often times those games which arise out of nowhere, those wholly organic ones somehow stitched together by […]

UBC receiver Shemar McBean gets a little camera time after hauling in a 62-yard touchdown pass from Derek Engel as Regina visited the Thunderbirds in Canada West football action Friday, Sept. 12, 2025 at Thunderbird Stadium in Vancouver. (Photo by Richard Lam property of UBC Athletics 2025. All Rights Reserved)
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UBC Football: Ahead of Friday Homecoming here’s three things to ponder after ‘Birds loss to Regina: How do ‘Birds stop the run? How dangerous is the Derek Engel deep ball? You gotta love Tyson Lewis!

By Howard TsumuraVarsityLetters.caVANCOUVER — It a little crazy to think that when the UBC Thunderbirds come charging onto the field Friday to face the visiting Calgary Dinos (6 p.m., Canada West TV) that they will have reached the midway point of the Canada West football regular season … in just 23 days.In what has seemed […]

UBC'S Tyson Lewis (left) looks to celebrate his key fumble recovery with teammate Malcolm Fraser during Aug. 28 Canada West opener against Manitoba at Thunderbird Stadium. UBC's youth movement, especially along its defensive front and in its defensive secondary, are huge keys this season. (Photo by Richard Lam property of UBC athletics 2025. All Rights Reserved)
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UBC football: Who are the 2025 Thunderbirds, really? After tough loss in Saskatoon, Friday test against No. 6 Regina Rams could go long ways towards revealing team’s true identity!

By Howard Tsumura (VarsityLetters.ca)VANCOUVER — There comes a point in every great piece of mystery writing where the protagonist is confronted by a sense of the unknown, creating a work of dramatic tension best described in literary terms as a real ‘page turner’.In a manner of speaking, that’s kind of been the story arc thus […]

Detroit Lions offensive lineman Giovanni Manu (59) before an NFL football game against the Miami Dolphins on Saturday, Aug. 16, 2025 in Detroit. (Photo by Jeff Nguyen property of Detroit Lions via AP 2025. All Rights Reserved)
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Veteran mentorship helps ex-‘Birds O-lineman Giovanni Manu tackle the challenges of climbing the depth chart with Detroit! New NFL season opens Sunday as Manu and the Lions face Green Bay!

By Howard Tsumura(VarsityLetters.com)VANCOUVER — Giovanni Manu came to the Detroit Lions draped in a blank canvas. Now, two NFL training camps later, the 6-foot-7, 350-pound former UBC Thunderbirds standout from Pitt Meadows has put himself in the big picture.“Short story is, if they told me I had to play left tackle against the Green Bay Packers […]

UBC's Edgerrin Williams-Hernandez is the picture of contentment at Thunderbirds Stadium as he celebrates of one his two TDs as the 'Birds defeated the Manitoba Bisons 21-9 in its 2025 Canada West season opener Aug. 28 in Vancouver. (Photo by Richard Lam property of UBC athletics 2025. All Rights Reserved)
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Postcards from The Edge: UBC’s Edgerrin Williams-Hernandez shows he can still deliver the mail! ‘Birds speedy receiver looks to put his own stamp on a special senior season!

By Howard Tsumura (VarsityLetters.ca)VANCOUVER — It’s no stretch to say that over the past 12 months, a lot of Edgerrin Williams-Hernandez’s evenings would end wondering if he was ever going to catch another touchdown pass in Thunderbirds’ blue and gold.In fact until he put all of those doubts to rest with two scoring catches in […]

UBC quarterback Drew Viotto brought his physical style against the Manitoba defence as the Thunderbirds defeated the Bisons 21-9 in its 2025 Canada West season opener Aug. 28 at Thunderbird Stadium in Vancouver. (Photo by Richard Lam property of UBC athletics 2025. All Rights Reserved)
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Tsumura on UBC Football: My two big takeaways from impressive win over No. 8-ranked Manitoba! Why ‘Birds have an enviable QB situation, and why anyone would covet the blue-&-gold’s front 7!

By Howard Tsumura (VarsityLetters.ca)VANCOUVER — It’s not that Blake Nill misunderstood the question.More than that, it’s all part-and-parcel of the DNA of post-game coach speak to remain in the moment. You know, the micro… not the macro.Yet, in the aftermath of a Canada West season-opening 21-9 victory over the No. 8 Manitoba Bisons here Thursday […]

Chicago Bears' Theo Benedet takes on the Buffalo Bills' Landon Jackson, Sunday, August 17, 2025, in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo property of Chicago Bears 2025. All Rights Reserved)
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In a case of ‘carpe diem’ defined, UBC’s Theo Benedet puts adversity behind him and seizes the day with Chicago Bears! Handsworth grad still in the battle for starting left tackle spot!

By Howard Tsumura (VarsityLetters.ca)VANCOUVER — Theo Benedet showed up at Chicago Bears training camp and made such an impression that it was senseless to whisper.And on Tuesday afternoon, after the North Vancouver native and UBC Thunderbirds’ alumnus was announced as part of the NFL team’s final 53-man roster, what wound up speaking loudest of all […]

UBC's Ben Sangmuah proudly holds the Mitchell Bowl following a win in the national semifinals over St. FX Nov. 18 at UBC. (Photo by Bob Frid property of UBC Athletics 2025. All Rights Reserved) (Photo by Bob Frid property of UBC Athletics 2025. All Rights Reserved)
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From Ghana to Point Grey: UBC’s Ben Sangmuah may have started late, but fourth-year linebacker a quick study! Birds’ recent NFL successes bring Steelers, Colts, Bears for a Thunderbird Stadium peek!

By Howard Tsumura (VarsityLetters.ca)VANCOUVER — If you could invent a device to measure the collective quickness with which a developing football player grasps the concepts of the game and then proceeds to carry them to the next level, it would be the rare few who would calibrate in the same neighbourhood as Ben Sangmuah.Just four […]

UBC's Derek Engel has brought his veteran presence to training camp this season. (Photo by Bob Frid property of UBC athletics 2025. All Rights Reserved)
Feature University Football

UBC Football 2025: As coach Nill begins second decade at the helm, program’s passing excellence creates a hallmark legacy! Ahead of opener, latest QB room boasting experience and promise!

By Howard Tsumura (Varsity Letters)VANCOUVER — Blake Nill is set to begin his second decade at the helm of the UBC football program, and so perhaps it’s fitting that the coach who landed two of the most prodigious quarterbacks in program history is starting his next big chapter with what not only qualifies as a […]