Gritty Isaiah Solomon (left), pictured during his 2012-13 rookie season, is hoping to make a return to the UBC men's basketball roster after an extended absence. (File photo by Howard Tsumura property of VarsityLetters.com)
Feature University Men's Basketball

UBC men’s basketball: Asian international the newest ‘Bird, an Isaiah spotting, Shook joins coaching staff

VANCOUVER — The UBC Thunderbirds men’s basketball team may have had its highly-anticipated clash with NCAA Div. 1 UC Santa Barbara, scheduled for Friday at War Gym, cancelled by the visitors concerns with local air quality. That doesn’t mean, however, that in the dead of summer, there was any lack of news emanating from head coach […]

Former W.J. Mouat Hawks' star lineman Sheriden Lawley is greeted by his new head coach, UBC's Blake Nill, as fall camp is underway for the Thunderbirds. (Photo by Richard Lam property of UBC athletics)
Fraser Valley Cascades' freshman midfielder Anthony Vega (left, 5), a New Westminster Secondary grad, is one of a gaggle of rookies populating the roster of the Abbotsford-based U Sports program this season. (Photo by Howard Tsumura property of Varsity Letters)
Feature University Men's Soccer

UFV men’s soccer 2018: Cascades undergo a true culture change as 15 pure freshmen form program’s new foundation

ABBOTSFORD — It takes a pretty honest architect to unroll the blueprint and wield the eraser when the plans for a newly-poured foundation have barely had the opportunity to settle.

UBC's huge class of incoming players gathered Thursday on the Point Grey campus in advance of its 2018 fall camp. (Photo by Richard Lam property of UBC athletics)
Feature University Football

UBC FOOTBALL: How the ‘Birds new 2018 class can lean on and learn from 2015’s rookie class of Vanier Cup champions

VANCOUVER — His imprints may still seem fresh, yet with his fourth fall training camp at the helm of UBC football officially set to open today, you could say that Thunderbirds’ head coach Blake Nill has finally got some blue-and-gold tradition of his own to lean on.On Thursday afternoon, 16 sleeps ahead of its Canada […]

UBC's Liesanne Musico (right) and the rest of the Thunderbirds dropped a 3-2 decision to the visiting Western Washington Vikings on Thursday at Dhillon Field. (Photo by Wilson Wong property of UBC athletics)
Feature University Women's Soccer

UBC women’s soccer 2018: ‘Birds tackle challenging early slate of NCAA foes in search of the new identity

VANCOUVER — It was a week-long, season-opening boot camp from hell, scheduled to test their mettle, reveal their character and start to define their new identity as a soccer team.It’s a process that can’t be avoided when you graduate a pair of attacking phenoms — Jasmin Dhanda and Aman Shergill — who accounted for fully 62 […]

Swimmer Ruishen Yu of Surrey's Fraser Heights Secondary begins his university sports career in the fall with the UBC Thunderbirds. (Photo by Richard Lam property of UBC athletics)
Feature High School University

Destination: University! Varsity Letters’ 2018 BC Recruits List charts path of 986 student-athletes in 18 different sports

LANGLEY — We put a cap-and-gown finish to 2018’s B.C. Recruits List Week here at VarsityLetters by presenting our entire list today, with baseball, softball, rowing, field hockey, hockey, golf, lacrosse, rugby, swimming, tennis, fencing and wrestling. If you know of names we’ve missed, let us know! Full instructions are below and we will update throughout […]

Taryn O'Neill (right) of George Elliott, and New Westminster's Grace Fetherstonhaugh will embark on NCAA careers this fall at Villanova and Oregon State respectively. (Photo by Howard Tsumura property of VarsityLetters.ca)
Feature High School Cross Country High School Track & Field

Varsity Letters’ B.C. Recruits List 2018: Where 69 girls and boys track & field and XC prospects are headed this coming season

LANGLEY — In terms of the mark B.C.’s graduating Class of 2018 student-athletes made, both on the trails and especially on the track this season, it’s easy to call it one of the province’s most elite in recent memory.

This past season's Oct. 21 clash in Surrey between Holy Cross (red) and visiting Windsor showcased quarterback recruits for both SFU (Nate Hunt, with ball) and UBC (Ryan Baker, 8). (Photo by Howard Tsumura property of VarsityLetters.ca)
Feature High School Football University Football

Varsity Letters’ B.C. Recruits List 2018: Where 111 football prospects are headed this coming season

LANGLEY — Welcome to Day 2 of B.C. Recruits List Week here at Varsity Letters. As we mentioned yesterday, we’ll be previewing a sport a day through this week with the entire list set for Sunday publication. Wednesday is football day!

In an offseason where he whet his international coaching appetite again and brought in two of the biggest transfer in program history, UBC head coach Kevin Hanson has made a statement that nothing will remain static heading into the 2018-19 season. (Photo by Richard Lam property of UBC athletics)
Feature University Men's Basketball

UBC men’s basketball notebook: Luka’s official farewell tonight, offensive systems get tune-up, ass’t coaching hunt begins

VANCOUVER — In the lead-up to tonight’s men’s basketball friendly at War Memorial Gymnasium between the UBC Thunderbirds and Team China (7 p.m., $5 tickets), we clean up a busy week of news surrounding the local team with a Varsity Letters’ notebook.