Panthers celebrate a touchdown over Nechako in semi-finals (Darren Hoves photo)

By Kevin Rothwell

Two teams in finals

Panthers on the prowl at provincials

Dec 1, 2023 | 5:30 PM

It is going to be a cat and dog fight Saturday afternoon at BC Place Stadium in Vancouver as the VSS Panthers Senior Varsity team battles Nanaimo’s John Barsby Bulldogs, for B.C. highschool football AAA/AA supremacy.

The scouting on the Bulldogs offense shows a big, strong power run team, that occasionally goes the air.

“They have a huge size advantage over us so we are going to have to rely on technique and scheme to slow them down and get stops. Our defensive coaches (Rothwell, Schulz and Vandeleest) have put together a solid game plan and the boys have looked good in practice all week,” VSS head coach Sean Smith said. “The unfortunate part is that it is very difficult to simulate Barsby’s offence with a scout team because of their size and the power they bring. As a result, we will find out very quickly after kick-off if we are going to be able to withstand what I call their “mash” or rugby scrum style of football. If we want to get stops, we are going to have to meet them at the point of attack and be sound gang tacklers.”

On the other side of the ball, the Bulldogs have mastered the cover three defense and play very sound in their zone coverages. They are a bend-but-don’t-break defence that will give VSS the underneath passes but rarely give up big plays over the top.

“If we want to be successful in the passing game (which we have been this year), we are going to have to be patient and take what they give us….looking for explosive plays when they present themselves. They have a very good defensive line that is big and aggressive. Because of this, they are able to rush four most of the time and get consistent pressure which is a huge advantage,” Smith noted. “They are also very good tacklers across the board and pursue the ball very well. To score points, we are going to have to have a balanced attack, mixing our short, medium and long passing game with lots of runs. We also have to limit our turnovers. which is what killed us when we played them in the semi finals last year.”

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Panthers quarterback Cole Budgen has been on fire the past two playoff games going a combined 28 of 35 for 542 yards and five touchdown passes. Last game, he ran in three as well.

The Bulldogs won the West division at 6 and 1, while Vernon swept the Interior division with six wins and no losses

The championship game is set for BC Place Stadium on Saturday, Dec. 2 nd at 4 p.m. The cats are playing in their fourth championship game in six seasons. They won the title in 2018 and 2019.

The VSS Junior Panthers will take on the Parksville Qualicum Ballenas Whalers at 9 a.m. on Saturday, also at BC Place Stadium. Vernon won the Interior/Hybrid Junior Division with three wins and no losses, while Ballenas won all five of its games in the Coastal/Hybrid Division.

The games will be live streamed with commentary on the BC School Sports YouTube channel.