Detroit Lions offensive lineman Giovanni Manu (59) during his first NFL preseason game, against the New York Giants on Aug. 8, 2024 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Jeff Nguyen property of Detroit Lions via AP. Image provided by request to VarsityLetters.ca by Detroit Lions)
Feature University Football

Giovanni Manu comes home: On eve of season opener, UBC’s Pride of the (Detroit) Lions salutes his mentors past, relishes the chance to grow with the best offensive line in the NFL!

VANCOUVER — Perfect team. Perfect time. Perfect fit.So perfect, in fact, that you wonder if there had been more than a little divine intervention from the football gods above.How else does Giovanni Manu wind up a fourth-round pick of the Detroit Lions this past April, thus becoming the first UBC Thunderbird ever selected in the […]

UBC's dynamic bookend duo of offensive tackles -- Giovanni Manu (left) and Theo Bendet -- are all smile this past Nov. 11 after leading UBC to the Hardy Cup conference championship at Thunderbird Stadium. Next stop: NFL? We'll have to wait until draft day to find out. (Photo by Bob Frid property of UBC Athletics 2023 All Rights Reserved)
Feature University Football

The story of Gio and Theo: UBC’s book-end offensive tackles bring rare size and athleticism to the party! NFL teams and major pundits can’t help but be impressed ahead of 2024 draft!

By Howard TsumuraVANCOUVER — The story of Gio and Theo is the story of two ‘Made-in-B.C.’ high school football products who not only made the decision to play for their home university team, but along that  journey turned themselves into the kinds of players with a chance to play in the National Football League.UBC offensive lineman […]

We've got the latest updates to boys and girls schedules for TBI 2022 at the Langley Events Centre. (Photo by Wilson Wong 2021. All Rights Reserved)
Feature High School Boys Basketball High School Girls Basketball

TBI 2022: Burnaby Central boys, Pitt Meadows girls draw into the fold after late cancellations, latest draws now available

LANGLEY TOWNSHIP – There have been a pair of late changes to both boys and girls Tsumura Basketball Invitational eight-team draws, prompting us to re-publish those affected brackets.In the boys TBI, Langley Secondary has dropped out of the Langley-Surrey region eight-team draw. Taking their place will be the Burnaby Central Wildcats, who will now oppose […]

There are still tickets available to attend the Rich Goulet celebration of life on Nov. 7 in Pitt Meadows. (Photo by Wilson Wong 2021. All Rights Reserved)
Feature High School Boys Basketball

Rich Goulet Celebration: Still plenty of available tickets to honour late B.C. high school coaching great on Nov. 7 in Pitt Meadows!

PITT MEADOWS — If you are still interested in attending next month’s ‘Celebrating the Wonderful Life of Richard ‘Rich’ Goulet’ event, being held in honour of the late, great B.C. high school basketball coach, there is still plenty of room available.The Nov. 7 gathering for the Pitt Meadows Marauders and St. Thomas More Knights head […]

The late Pitt Meadows senior boys basketball coach Rich Goulet. (Photo by Wilson Wong property of Wilson Wong photography 2021. All Rights Reserved)
Feature High School Boys Basketball

Tsumura: On what Rich Goulet’s after-hours home at Pitt Meadows was really like, and why its gym should forever bear his name!

You know what the most disappointing aspect of the movement currently afoot to have the gymnasium at Pitt Meadows Secondary School named in honour of its late, great basketball coach Rich Goulet?That the request wasn’t met with an automatic ‘Yes.’Of course I understand that the answer is ‘No’ and that tensions have built over the […]

The late Rich Goulet, valedictorian of the first graduating class at Burnaby's St. Thomas More Collegiate and later a two-time provincial championship-winning coach at the school, will see his name forever linked with the Knights' tradition-laden tournament, heretofore known as the Rich Goulet Memorial Chancellor. (Photo by Wilson Wong 2021. All Rights Reserved)
Feature High School Boys Basketball

Welcome to the Rich Goulet Memorial Chancellor! St. Thomas More to honour its late, great pioneering coach with lifelong tournament dedication!

BURNABY — In its early days, St. Thomas More Collegiate’s Chancellor Invitational enjoyed the distinct blessing of being run by a basketball visionary.From his very start as boys varsity head coach in 1970, Rich Goulet knew just what the Burnaby school’s annual tournament needed to represent to both student-athletes and coaches, and he worked tirelessly […]

Longtime former Pitt Meadows senior boys basketball coach Rich Goulet passed away Sunday at the age of 74. (Photo by Wilson Wong property of Wilson Wong photography 2021. All Rights Reserved)
Feature High School Boys Basketball

RIP, Coach: For Pitt Meadows & STM’s Rich Goulet (1946-2021), basketball was his student, his teacher and the air that he’d breathe

PITT MEADOWS — On Sunday, on what would be the final day of a life so completely devoted to his greatest passion, Rich Goulet made a simple request.“Scoresheets. He was asking for scoresheets from a Grade 9 basketball tournament,” said his nephew Dave Goulet who was bedside at the hospital, tending to the needs of […]

Pitt Meadows' 6-foot-8 Giovanni Manu puts up his hands on defence against South Kam's 6-foot-11 centre Ripley Martin during B.C. AAA Final 4 clash, March 9 at Langley Events Centre. (Photo by Howard Tsumura property of VarsityLetters.ca)
Feature High School Boys Basketball University Football

Giovanni Manu: Pitt Meadows’ mammoth man-in-the-middle bids farewell to hoops as UBC football career awaits

PITT MEADOWS — On first glance, and for obvious reasons, 6-foot-8, 320-pound Giovanni Manu has a way of locking down your focus. Yet it’s what happens in the moments after he catches your eye that makes him an irresistible fan favourite.

Point guard Arun Atker is among a gaggle of rising seniors that have the North Delta Huskies as the team to beat heading into the 2018-19 AAA season. (Photo by Howard Tsumura property of Varsity Letters)
Feature High School Boys Basketball

03.18.18 AAA Pre-Preseason rankings tab North Delta Huskies to win first B.C. title in 29 years, Tupper and McMath among top trio

LANGLEY — Five of the eight quarterfinalists from the recent B.C. boys senior boys AAA championships are back as part of the Pre-Preseason rankings. All of that adds up to growing rivalries and the continued competitive excellence within the province’s newest tier.

Friday Night Lights are back again. (BC High School Football)
Feature High School Football

10.13.17: Varsity Letters’ B.C. High School Football Report, Friday Night Lights edition

It’s Friday night, and time for our weekly tradition: Varsity Letters’ B.C. High School Football Report. Please continue to check back here throughout the evening as we update action from around the province. First a scoreboard, followed by the game reports!