VANCOUVER — Over the window of their academic careers on the Point Grey campus, forestry students at UBC can put in the long hours required towards earning a Masters degree in the sustainable management of one of our province’s great natural resources.Over at Thunderbird Stadium, however, a whole other group of UBC students are attempting […]
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SFU’s Griffin Barrett: Why carrying a shovel on his shoulders is so meaningful for the Clan junior linebacker and GNAC tackling leader
BURNABY — Griffin Barrett couldn’t help but smile his best smile earlier this season, when on the Simon Fraser Clan football team’s picture day, he was handed what can only be described as the perfect prop just before taking his place in front of the camera and those flashing studio lights.Yup, you’re looking at it. […]
Cascades are better with Bryana Buttar in the batter! Rookie a rare ingredient as UFV hunkers for huge weekend homestand vs. UBC, UVic
ABBOTSFORD — With the same clockwork precision she has shown at every key stage of her soccer career, Bryana Buttar has once again arrived ahead of her time.“I definitely feel that my whole youth career has set me up for this,” the Fraser Valley Cascades’ dynamic midfielder remarked Wednesday of the opportunity she has seized […]
A Sunday Read: TWU’s Joanna Williams confronts her mental health struggles and says “I think there is something so beautiful about feeling strong”
LANGLEY — She’d never had this feeling before.For the first seven seasons of her competitive running life, Joanna Williams had tried to justify the myriad reasons that she trained and she raced, yet in her deepest place, they had all rung hollow.But this new feeling? What was it? She’d never had this feeling before.Two Saturday mornings […]
Football growing pains! Two pick-six majors against, two disallowed TDs are Clan’s undoing in home-opening loss to SD Hardrockers
BURNABY — The Simon Fraser Clan may be young, but they are starting to show enough signs of forward progress that head coach Thomas Ford, after the team’s 2019 home opener, refused to use their overall inexperience as a crutch.That was the story as the Clan (0-3) allowed the offence of the visiting South Dakota […]
UBC Football: ‘Birds hit midway mark of Canada West season plagued by giveaways, penalties in 37-19 loss at Manitoba
The UBC Thunderbirds spent the week leading up to Saturday afternoon’s key Canada West clash in Winnipeg against the Manitoba Bisons building the good vibes they hoped would bring about a sharp turn in their road as the 2019 Canada West season reached its midway mark.Instead, a fumbled hand-off on its first series, a surrendered […]
A Passage To India: The travels of UFV senior Taylor Claggett yield new perspectives as Cascades star preps for a torch-passing season
ABBOTSFORD — So many time-honoured adages centre around the fact that greatness remains elusive without first taking a willing step outside of your comfort zone.Taylor Claggett wants to lead her team to the top of the Canadian university basketball mountain this coming spring, so maybe it was fitting that she stepped outside of hers earlier […]
SFU’s Betsie de Beer: Clan volleyball star’s homage to her late high school coach Mike MacNeil reminds us all of the power of mentorship
BURNABY — Betsie de Beer doesn’t try to hide the fact that she is playing her final season of collegiate volleyball with a heavy heart.At the same time, however, Simon Fraser’s talented 6-foot-1 outside hitter and health sciences major can’t exactly offer a scientific explanation as to why of late, that heart of hers has […]
Varsity Letters PODCAST welcomes a football coaching trio: SFU’s Thomas Ford, UBC’s Taylor Nill, Langley’s Ryk Piche
Welcome back to Varsity Letters — The Podcast! You’ll find an embedded player below to listen to this week’s episode! As mid-September hits, footballs are in the air everywhere, including the respective home bases of our three gridiron guests this week. Off theta, Simon Fraser head coach Thomas Ford takes us from fall camp through […]
Football gods frown on UBC: Dinos drub winless ‘Birds as 2019 Homecoming game goes awry in second half
VANCOUVER — In the Canada West football world, there is only one magic pill… one way to turn a down-trodden season around in one afternoon.Beat the Calgary Dinos.For most of the first half Saturday, the UBC Thunderbirds (0-3) looked like they had Houdini on their side.A blocked punt and ensuing touchdown by the UBC special […]