The BC Football Conference season starts for the Prince George Kodiaks on Saturday, July 19 at Masich Place Stadium when they host the Westshore Rebels of Langford.
Head coach Jamie Boreham and his Kodiak troops are brimming with bravado as they head into their fourth season knowing that for the first time since they joined the BCFC in 2021 they’ve got real experience on their side.
Armed with an abundance of 21- and 22-year-olds at the top of the junior football age spectrum, most of whom have been with the team since the birth of the franchise, the Kodiaks are convinced that veteran presence on both sides of the ball will give Prince George fans the winning team they’ve been craving all along.
The Kodiaks got off to a great start a year ago. They won the first two games of the season, beating Kamloops twice, then lost by 31 points to an Okanagan Sun team that ran roughshod over everyone in their path to the Canadian Bowl championship.
That was the start of a seven-game losing streak for Prince George that ended on the last day of the season with a win on home turf at Masich Place Stadium over the Vancouver Island Raiders.
A 3-7 record won’t get you into the playoffs, but coach Boreham says that’s a realistic goal for his team this summer and he’d love to reward Kodiak fans with a home playoff date. To do that they’ll have to finish either first or second in the seven-team BCFC.
“We’re going to see a lot more familiar faces around, we’ve got a lot of players returning across the board offensively and defensively,” said Boreham, now in his third season as Kodiaks bench boss. “Hopefully we’ll get off to a good start because we have the guys who have already played in those positions and we’ll try to carry forward the success from the end of last season into the beginning of this one.
“We caught the injury bug early and it slowed down a leadership change that was needed within the team. I think they learned to lead from the sidelines and that helped them lead once they were back on the field and it showed in our last four games just how much more consistent we were and how much better an understanding they had of game plans and how to execute them.”
He saw his players in action on the field at the spring camp in May and the difference in their preparation and knowledge about what they should be was readily apparent to Boreham.
The offence hinges on quarterback Sawyer Thiessen and a cast of receivers that includes Kayle Cowley, Carson Briere, Andrew Brown, Quinn Neukomm, Myron Brown and Brayden Van Someren. Work commitments have kept running back Xander Shane from coming back to PG but the Kodiaks will have a healthy Gavin Halvorson back to carry the mail.
Four of the five starting offensive linemen are back, including Connor Sherlock of Prince George. Transplanted Brit JJ Aboagye now lives in the city year-round to make sure he’s prepared to play on the defensive line, backed by the likes of Glenn Falkowski, Westan Shiels and Hixon anchor Jason Kragt. Caiden Crow returns to a linebacking crew full of familiar faces and Aiden Leslie, Taeman Piddocke and Peyton Briere (back from the injury shelf) will shore up the secondary.
“We’re only replacing two starters — there’s a different feel to it,” said Boreham. “I can think whatever I want as a coach, but if the players on the bus understand why we’re here and what we’re doing, there’s chances for some real special things to happen.”
The Kodiaks play a five-game home schedule that also has them hosting Langley Rams (Aug. 16), Okanagan (Sept. 6), Valley Huskers of Chilliwack (Sept. 13) and Kamloops (Sept. 27).
The Kodiaks topped a list of the best junior football fan gameday experiences in the entire Canadian Junior Football League in 2024 and Boreham said that comes as no surprise. The games at Masich Place Stadium are always fun to be a part of and the rowdy Masich following creates that atmosphere.
“Our guys love it,” said Boreham, “they love being involved in the community stuff, whether it be high school or youth programs, those kids look up to our guys, they want to be them, they want to emulate them,” said Boreham. “It’s almost like being a pro team in a small town because this is the highest level of football.
“The community has been very receptive and sponsorships have been great. The billets have been awesome as well; our billet program has grown every year and it’s been fantastic. We want to be more that just the football team, we want to be part of our community and not just in it.”
The team depends on billet homes to take in players from out of town during the season and with a roster of 80 to accommodate more billet homes are always needed.
The Kodiaks are a not-for-profit organization that depends on sponsorships and fans in the stands to pay the bills. Their biggest annual fundraiser, the fifth annual Kodiaks golf tournament set for Friday, June 20 at Aberdeen Glen, is close to being sold out. To register, email [email protected].
The team also raises money to support the 80-player roster through a 50-50 draw. The winning ticket will be drawn July 12 at 7 p.m. at Treasure Cove Prestige Resort.
The Kodiaks also organize a regional youth flag football league in the spring and runs a series of five-day multisport activity summer camps. The first of the five-weekday (8 a.m.-5 p.m.) sessions starts July 7 and runs through Aug. 29.
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