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Canadians in the NCAA: Bowl Games

Canadians in the NCAA: Bowl Games

By Michael Preston

When the series of NCAA college football bowl games kicks off during the festive season, there will be 20 games featuring teams with Canadian players on their rosters.

Some will have to be content to watch from the sidelines and soak up the bowl game atmosphere, but there are several who will hope to make an impact as the season reaches its climax.

First up is the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl, which gets underway in Honolulu between Boise State and East Carolina on Sunday, December 23 at 8pm. There will be three Canadians in action, all lining up for Boise State.

Junior offensive lineman Andrew Woodruff (Victoria, BC / Victoria HS) is likely to start at right guard, while junior Jon Gott (Lethbridge, AB / Lethbridge Collegiate) should also see action up front at left guard. The pair is joined by senior linebacker Josh Bean (Calgary, AB / Bishop Carroll HS), primarily a special teams player who saw action in all 12 games for the Broncos and this season Challenger ended his fifth season with the Eagles with 44 receptions for 545 yards and 5 touchdowns, 2 punt returns, and was fourth on the team in scoring and all-purpose yards. He also blocked a kick on special teams.

“From when we started training in the summer this is what we were working towards,” said Challenger.

In opposition for Michigan State will be redshirt freshman nose tackle J’Michael Deane (Toronto, ON / Newtonbrook Secondary) and starting left guard Mike Gyetvai (Old Castle, ON / Sandwich Secondary). Sophomore offensive tackle Tom Kaczmarek (London, ON / Catholic Central) is on the physically unable to perform list.

That same evening at 8pm when Houston takes on TCU in the Texas Bowl at Reliant Stadium, sophomore linebacker Shomari Williams (Brampton, ON / Champlain Regional Prep) will see action at linebacker. He recorded 17 tackles, including 2 for a loss, 1.5 sacks and a fumble recovery this season.

The Cougars are 7-5 against TCU in their hometown, but UH have lost three straight in home games.

The Meineke Car Care Bowl in Charlotte, NC between UConn and Wake Forest on Saturday, December 29 at 1pm features Connecticut junior tight end Martin Bedard (Laval, QC / Vieux Montreal) who will see action at tight end and also as the Huskies’ long snapper. This season he played in all 12 games and caught 2 passes for 33 yards.

Also on the UConn roster is freshman offensive lineman Muhammad Petrus (St Laurent, QC / Vanier Prep).

Likely to make a defensive impact for UCF when they clash with Mississippi State in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl in Memphis is starting senior defensive tackle Keith Shologan (Edmonton, AB / Spruce Grove Composite). Shologan ended the Knights’ season with 25 tackles, including 4 for a loss of -10 yards, 2.5 sacks, 7 quarter back hurries and 1 fumble recovery.

A third Canadian in bowl action that Saturday, December 29, at 8pm is Penn State sophomore tight end Francis Claude (Laval, QC / Champlain Prep). The Nittany Lions come up against Texas A&M in the Valero Alamo Bowl in San Antonio.

Bringing in the New Year, on Thursday January 3, expect to see safety Tang Bacheiye (Windsor, ON / Sandwich HS) line up for the previously second-ranked Kansas Jayhawks in the FedEx Orange Bowl against Virginia Tech. Junior defensive back Bacheiye recorded 8 tackles this year, including half a tackle for a loss, starting once as he played in all 12 games.

The Jayhawks and Hokies will meet on the football field for the first time after KU won its first 11 contests of the season before falling to rival Missouri in the regular season game, while Tech brings a 11-2 record into the bowl game.

When the International Bowl comes to the Rogers Centre in Toronto at noon on Saturday, January 5, there will be a home state hero on show in Rutgers defensive end Jamaal Westerman (Brampton, ON / Notre Dame HS). Westerman will close out his college career with the Scarlet Knights against Ball State having enjoyed a successful senior year. He recorded 47 tackles including an impressive 13 for a combined loss of 95 yards, 8 sacks for -54 yards, 1 pass break and 11 quarterback hurries.

Also on the Rutgers roster are freshman wide receiver Jawann Westerman (Brampton, ON / Notre Dame HS) and junior defensive end Jonathan Pierre-Etienne (Montreal, QC / Vieux Montreal).

“Rutgers is a great addition to our game,” said International Bowl Executive Director Ken Hoffman. “We are proud to have such a celebrated school add to the history of the International Bowl. They have a large alumni following and will bring many fans into the city for bowl week.”

The International Bowl is the only NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision game played outside of the United States.

Closing out the bowl action for this season will be Tulsa freshman Tyler Homes (Ottawa, ON / Merivale HS), who is likely to play at guard on the offensive line against Bowling Green in the GMAC Bowl in Mobile, AL, on Sunday, January 6 at 8pm.

Other Canadians on the rosters of bowl teams:

Peter Carriere (Laval, QC / St Leonard) DB, Redshirt Freshman, Cincinnati

Papajohns.com Bowl

Southern Miss vs. Cincinnati

Birmingham, AL

Saturday, December 22, 1pm

John Bender (Cochrane, AB / Cochrane HS) OL, Redshirt Freshman, Nevada

Jason Dumas (Abbotsford, BC / Rick Hansen Secondary) K, Redshirt Freshman, New Mexico

New Mexico Bowl

Nevada vs. New Mexico

Albuquerque, NM

Saturday, December 22, 4.30pm

Jadon Wagner (Lethbridge, AB / LCI) LB, Freshman, BYU

Pioneer Las Vegas Bowl

UCLA vs. BYU

Las Vegas, NV

Saturday, December 22, 8pm

Lucas Garby (London, ON / Western Mustangs) QB, Junior, Arizona State

Pacific Life Holiday Bowl

Arizona State vs. Texas

San Diego, CA

Thursday, December 27, 8pm

Michael Carter (Windsor, ON / Sandwich Secondary) DB, Senior, Maryland

Emerald Bowl

Maryland vs. Oregon State

San Francisco, CA

Friday, December 28, 8.30pm

Michael Kachmer (Montreal, QC / St Francis) WR, Sophomore, Colorado

PetroSun Independence Bowl

Alabama vs. Colorado

Shreveport, La

Sunday, December 30, 8pm

Jordan Willetts (Surrey, BC / Lord Tweedsmuir Sec) DB, Freshman, Oregon

Brut Sun Bowl

South Florida vs. Oregon

El Paso, TX

Monday, December 31, 2pm

Renaldo Segasse (Montreal, QC / Vieux Montreal) DL, Freshman, Michigan

Capital One Bowl

Michigan vs. Florida

Orlando, FL

Tuesday, January 1, 1pm

Trey Henderson (Vancouver, BC / Vancouver College) DE, Freshman, USC

Rose Bowl presented by Citi

Illinois vs. USC

Pasadena, CA

Tuesday, January 1, 4.30pm

Joseph Malabuyoc (Vancouver, BC / Vancouver College) DB, Freshman, Hawaii

Allstate Sugar Bowl

Hawaii vs. Georgia

New Orleans, LA

Tuesday, January 1, 8.30pm