The University of British Columbia Thunderbirds football team is heading to the Vanier Cup for the first time since 2015 and Abbotsford talent has helped the team on its memorable run this season.
Six Abbotsford products are on the team, which won the Mitchell Bowl on Nov. 18 to advance to national championship Vanier Cup game set for Saturday (Nov. 25) against the University of Montreal Carabins in Kingston, Ont.
Abbotsford Senior grads Micah Logan and Luke Pearson, Robert Bateman grads Sam Davenport and Nolan Watrin as well as W.J. Mouat grads Dylan Michel-Kang and Shawn Lal are all on the 2023 team.
Logan and Pearson both man the defensive line, Davenport and Kang are receivers, Watrin is a defensive back and Lal is a quarterback.
The Thunderbirds went 6-2 in Canada West conference play and then defeated the Manitoba Bisons 29-21 in the Hardy Cup semi-final on Nov. 4. They collected the Hardy Cup, which is the CW championship, with a 28-27 win over the Alberta Golden Bears.
Davenport caught a last second touchdown to help UBC win that game.
🏈 FB | Sam Davenport with the last second touchdown, the convert is good and @ubcfbl wins the 86th Hardy Cup!@CanadaWest pic.twitter.com/yCPdinyEwb
— UBC Thunderbirds (@ubctbirds) November 11, 2023
UBC moved on to the Mitchell Bowl and defeated the St. Francis Xavier University X-Men 47-17 on Nov. 18. Davenport had an excellent game with 139 yards receiving and two touchdowns. The Bateman grad is a transfer this season after playing several seasons with the SFU football program. SFU folded its football program in April, leaving players to scramble for new homes.
🏈 FB | Sam Davenport has all day to come down with his 2nd touchdown of the afternoon! It's now a 43-17 @ubcfbl lead in the 4th quarter of the 2023 Mitchell Bowl! #GoBirdsGo pic.twitter.com/hBgCdBhKlS
— UBC Thunderbirds (@ubctbirds) November 18, 2023
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Montreal last won the Vanier Cup in 2014 and enter the final after defeating the Western University Mustangs 29-3 on Nov. 18
