Thousands expected to celebrate Saskatchewan’s first Football Day

It’s a big day for football in Saskatchewan today as the province marks its first ever Football Day.

Hosted by the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon, the event aims to celebrate the sport as a whole and bring together both players and fans from across the province for a day filled with games, activities, and community.

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Shannon Chinn, chief athletics officer for Huskie Athletics, spoke to The Evan Bray Show about the event. She said that this year’s event will showcase football at every level.

Listen to Shannon Chinn on The Evan Bray Show:

“That’s the Saskatoon Minor Football (SMF) slogan — ‘from playground to pros’ —and we’ve got some that that have come through, Huskies that started at SMF who are now playing for the Riders and/or elsewhere in the CFL,” Chinn said.

The event at Griffiths Stadium in Nutrien Park, will be hosted by the U of S Huskies, SMF, Football Saskatchewan, and the Saskatoon Secondary Schools Athletics Association.

Chinn said that the organizers are expecting a large crowd.

“There’ll be about 2,000 kids here from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. playing flag football, and then we’ll have two Kinsman tackle football games, at 9 a.m. and 11 a.m.,” she said.

It won’t just be football though, with the Co-op Rally Alley from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m featuring live music, food trucks, beer gardens, face painting, and a variety of games and activities. It is free to attend.

Football fans might even get the chance to catch a glimpse of some of their favourite players and mascots from teams like the Saskatchewan Roughriders, Saskatoon Hilltops, and Saskatoon Valkyries.

The day culminates with a game between U of S Huskies and Alberta Golden Bears at 7 p.m., with fireworks at half-time. All youth football players in Saskatoon and the surrounding region, as well as anyone participating in the day’s programming, will receive a $2 “Toonie Ticket” to attend the game.

The U SPORTS No. 5-ranked Huskies had their best offensive performance of the season last week, beating Calgary Dinos, recording 636 yards of total offence and are looking to stretch their winning streak to three games.

Quarterback Anton Amundrud had a career-high 429 passing yards and five touchdowns, and now leads Canada West conference with 1,641 passing yards and 14 passing touchdowns.

In other football action today, Regina Rams and Calgary Dinos square off at Mosaic Stadium at 2 p.m., and a win by the Rams would lock up a Canada West playoff berth.