It’s new day for the CFC25 Small School Rankings with seven programs making the leap into the top 25 in our first ranking of the season, and a bunch of movement across the prairies.
REGISTER NOW FOR THE CFC SHOWCASE IN FEBRUARY
HEADLINES
Alberta
- The reigning champions out of Holy Trinity Academy have picked up where they left off last year with a pair of massive victories to kickoff their campaign. In week one they battled perennial Tier II powerhouse St. Joseph, and were able to outlast their rivals in a offensive shootout for the 47-34 victory. They followed up with a big trip to Manitoba where they took on the defending DI champions St. Paul’s, and showed zero fear fighting their way to a 26-14 triumph on the road. They kept the ball rolling this past week with another 56-31 win over Hunting Hills to keep their flawless record intact. We can’t wait to see how the Knights handle their matchup against Raymond, who are looking to defend their Alberta DI title this season. They’ve set the standard on the CFC25 Rankings, and anybody across the country would be in trouble if they had to faceoff against Holy Trinity Academy.
- St. Joseph surely have some regrets about their opening contest against Holy Trinity Academy, but they were able to wash the bad taste out of their mouths with a pair of blowouts against High Prairie and Fort McMurray by a combined score of 115-8. They will be back in November, and will be praying for the chance to faceoff against the Knights one more time this season when it matters most.
- George McDougall started the season with a bang by knocking off the defending Tier III champions out of Holy Rosary by a score of 23-12. They followed up with a pair of big victories over Chestermere and W.H. Croxford, but they likely already have on eye down the road on a key game against Cochrane in October.
- Cochrane have had no struggles so far this season with a pair of victories over W.H. Croxford and Bert Church by a combined score of 91-7. Despite being a Tier III program, they proved they can dance with the big boys in Tier I Regional Based playdowns, and will be hoping to complete the mission in 2023 after falling short by one point in the South Championship a year ago.
- Austin O’Brien always take a different road to the Tier II showdowns through the Edmonton Metro Carr Division that features multiple CFC50 programs, including nationally #2 ranked Harry Ainlay. They were able to squeeze by Ross Sheppard in week one by a score of 17-12, but will need to be much better if they want to take the fight to Harry Ainlay this week.
- Holy Rosary got off to a tough start with their 23-12 loss against George McDougall, but they’ve bounced back with a 30-0 victory over Tier I program Paul Kane, and then came away triumphant in a cross-border battle against Carlton out of Saskatchewan by a score of 27-18. It’s going to be a long road back to the Tier III finals, but they are still the favourites to bring home back-to-back banners.
Quebec
- With College Bourget moving onto DI, there’s room for another program to take their place as one of the top teams in the DII division. Everyone will be chasing Dalbe-Viau, who took the league by storm a year ago in their first season in DII fighting their way to the Bol d’Or where they defeated College Laval 23-21. They might be even tougher to beat this year after beginning the year with a pair of statement wins over Saint-Georges and Estacades by a combine score of 103-17.
- Saint-Joseph are looking like true challengers for the title this year after a pair of dominant performances against Saint-Stanislas and Jacques-Rousseau to begin the year. They will get their first real test of the season to see where they stand with a key matchup against College Laval this week.
- Triolet are the new kids on the block this year after stepping down from DI to compete in the DII division. They had a tough time last season finishing 0-9 with just 36 points to their name, but they are already proving to be a handful for their DII counterparts with a huge 26-23 victory over last year’s runner-ups College Laval in week one. Unfortunately they found themselves on the losing end of the same score against Deux-Montagnes, but it looks like they’re comfortable in their new home and should provide a good challenge for Dalbe-Viau this week.
- Deux-Montagnes have already surpassed their win total from last year after finishing in the basement with a 1-7 record in 2022. They kicked off with a 20-14 win over Roger-Comtois, and followed up with a 26-23 victory over Triolet. It’ll be interesting to see how long they can continue their win streak with a tough contest against Estacades this week.
- College Laval are looking to get back to the Bol d’Or, but they’ve already hit some turbulence with their 26-23 loss to Triolet in the season opener. They got back on track beating Saint-Georges 20-14, but we will get a good idea of where they stand when they faceoff against Saint-Joseph this week.
Saskatchewan
- Bishop J. Mahoney were given a tough task against 6A Holy Cross to begin the year, but they didn’t back down from the challenge before eventually falling 19-18 in a close contest. It’s a great showing against stiff competition, and should set the foundation for another run to repeat as the Saskatchewan 5A Provincial Champions.
- Weyburn and Yorkton head into the season as the frontrunners in the rural Saskatchewan league, and it looks like they’ll be racing towards another championship bout with strong starts to the season. Weyburn started off with a bang with a big cross-border matchup against Grant Park from Manitoba where they walked away with a 34-0 victory, and then dispatched Estevan 44-0 to begin league play. Meanwhile Yorkton had no issues sliding past A.E. Peacock by a score of 47-8 in their season opener. Central are the other program to watch who could shake up the rankings after an impressive 2022 campaign, and they look to be formidable again with a 52-7 blowout over Swift Current in week one. It’ll be fun to watch these three programs trade blows as the rural league look to reclaim the 5A Provincial title at the end of the year.
- Greenall will be looking to cause chaos on the 5A side of the bracket after a disappointing end to the season a year ago at the hands of Weyburn. The Regina based program has the ship heading in the right direction after a breezy 39-13 victory over Martin-Luther in their Stewart Division season opener.
British Columbia
- Preseason action is a special time in BC as programs get the chance to test their skills against non-conference opponents, and Robert Bateman once again proved they will be tough to handle with a 19-13 win over AAA opponent W.J. Mouat. They also asserted their dominance with a 34-0 win over South Kamloops to begin the year, so as of right now the rest of the field is still chasing Bateman for the chance to call themselves AA Varsity Champions this season.
- Mount Douglas have historically been one of the better programs on the AAA side of the province, but they had no answers for Vernon who ran away with a 32-0 victory. They should be contenders for the AA crown in 2023, but will need to be on their toes this week as they faceoff against a tough Langley program who’ll be chomping at the bit to finally join the party in their season opener.
- John Barsby were one of the surprise teams on the CFC25 Rankings last year, and it doesn’t look like they’re ready to slow down anytime soon with a convincing 44-7 win over AAA opponent Mt. Boucherie to begin the season. They will get their first chance at revenge next week when they faceoff against Robert Bateman in regular season action after falling short against the Timberwolves in the AA Varsity Finals in 2022.
- Holy Cross make their first ever appearance on the CFC25 Rankings after an impressive showing against AAA opponent Centennial in their season opener with a 46-36 victory. It’ll be intriguing to see how this season plays out for the Crusaders, who finished last season with a 3-3 record and a loss in the Wildcard round to Argyle.
Manitoba
- It’s a new world in Manitoba with a massive overhaul of the Tier system placing all the bigger schools in one league split into four divisions, meaning the likes of Sturgeon Heights, Vincent Massey (Brandon) and Springfield will now be facing off against CFC50 programs like St. Paul’s, Dakota and Grant Park. This has elevated programs like Fort Frances, Beaver Brae and St. Norbert into the CFC25 Rankings stratosphere, and it’ll be interesting to see where they fall at the end of the year as they battle for Tier II supremacy in Manitoba.
| # | Last Year | School | City | Prov. | Conf. Rec. | Non-Conf. Rec | Results |
| 1 | 1 | Holy Trinity Academy Knights | Okotoks | AB | 0-0 | 3-0 | W 56-31 vs. Hunting Hills |
| 2 | 5 | Dalbé-Viau Aigles D’Or | Lachine | QC | 2-0 | 0-0 | W 38-10 vs. Estacades |
| 3 | 3 | Robert Bateman Timberwolves | Abbotsford | BC | 0-0 | 2-0 | W 19-13 vs. W.J. Mouat |
| 4 | 4 | Bishop J. Mahoney Saints | Saskatoon | SK | 0-0 | 0-1 | L 19-18 vs. Holy Cross |
| 5 | 8 | Weyburn Eagles | Weyburn | SK | 1-0 | 1-0 | W 44-0 vs. Estevan |
| 6 | 17 | Cochrane Cobras | Cochrane | AB | 2-0 | 0-0 | W 52-0 vs. Bert Church |
| 7 | 20 | St. Joseph Celtics | Grande Prairie | AB | 2-0 | 0-1 | W 62-8 vs. Fort McMurray |
| 8 | 23 | Vernon Panthers | Vernon | BC | 0-0 | 1-0 | W 32-0 vs. Mt. Douglas |
| 9 | 21 | Yorkton Raider Gridders | Yorkton | SK | 1-0 | 1-0 | W 47-8 vs. A.E. Peacock |
| 11 | 12 | Séminaire Saint-Joseph Vert et Or | Trois-Rivieres | QC | 2-0 | 0-0 | W 41-6 vs. Jacques-Rousseau |
| 10 | 14 | George McDougall Mustangs | Airdrie | AB | 2-0 | 1-0 | W 51-7 vs. W.H. Croxford |
| 12 | 10 | John Barsby Bulldogs | Nanaimo | BC | 0-0 | 1-0 | W 44-7 vs. Mt. Boucherie |
| 13 | 15 | Greenall Griffins | Balgonie | SK | 1-0 | 0-0 | W 39-13 vs. Martin-Luther |
| 14 | 6 | Holy Rosary Raiders | Lloydminster | AB | 0-0 | 2-1 | W 27-18 vs. Carlton (SK) |
| 15 | UR | Polyvalente Deux-Montagnes Centurions | Rigaud | QC | 2-0 | 0-0 | W 26-23 vs. Triolet |
| 16 | 18 | Austin O’Brien Crusaders | Edmonton | AB | 1-0 | 0-0 | W 17-12 vs. Ross Sheppard |
| 17 | UR | Triolet Harfangs | Sherbrooke | QC | 1-1 | 0-0 | L 26-23 vs. Deux-Montagnes |
| 18 | 9 | College Laval Maraudeurs | Laval | QC | 1-1 | 0-0 | W 23-14 vs. Saint-Georges |
| 19 | UR | Holy Cross Crusaders | Surrey | BC | 0-0 | 1-0 | W 46-36 vs. Centennial |
| 20 | UR | Fort Frances Muskies | Fort Frances (ON) | MB | 1-0 | 0-0 | W 47-0 vs. Dryden |
| 21 | 19 | Langley Thunderbirds | Langley | BC | 0-0 | 0-0 | BYE |
| 22 | 22 | Central Cyclones | Moose Jaw | SK | 0-0 | 0-0 | Waiting vs. Swift Current |
| 23 | UR | Argyle Pipers | North Vancouver | BC | 0-0 | 0-0 | BYE |
| 24 | UR | Beaver Brae Broncos | Kenora (ON) | MB | 1-0 | 0-0 | W 42-0 vs. Tec Voc |
| 25 | UR | St. Norbert Celtics | Winnipeg | MB | 1-0 | 0-0 | W 53-14 vs. Daniel Mcintyre |
Advocating for football prospects one story at a time.
