RICHMOND HILL (Ontario) – U SPORTS is pleased to announce the schedule and broadcast times for the Road to 2023 Canada Life Vanier Cup matches, starting on Saturday, November 18, including the Uteck Cup and Mitchell Cup.
IN SPORTS National semi-finals – Saturday, November 18, 2023
Utec cut: Western Mustangs vs. Montreal Carabins
CEPSUM Stadium, Montreal (Quebec) at 12:07 PM (ET)
Mitchell Cup: St. FX’s X-Men vs. the UBC Thunderbirds
Thunderbirds Stadium, Vancouver, BC at 3:07 PM ET / 12:07 PM PT
Both games will be broadcast in French on TVA Sports and in English on CBC digital platforms.
Pairings and venues for the two semi-final cup matches are determined on the basis of a six-year rotation in which each association hosts and visits one association.
Uteck Cup 2023
Named in honor Larry Uteck, former head coach (1983-1997) and athletic director (1995-2002) of the Saint Mary’s Huskies, the Uteck Cup is the easternmost game played of the two semifinals. This year, the Montreal Carabins, the RSEQ champions, and the Western Mustangs, the OUA champions, will meet in a doubleheader. This will be the first time the Carabin and Mustang cross paths.
Montreal qualified for this game by beating Laval Rouge et Or 12-6 in a Dunsmore Cup match at CEPSUM Stadium. The Carabins are 3-1 in cup games, including 2-1 in the Uteck Cup. Montreal is 2-0 lifetime against OUA teams in national games, defeating Guelph 25-10 in the 2015 Mitchell Cup game and posting a 20-19 victory over the McMaster Marauders in the 2014 Vanier Cup.
For its part, Western defeated the Laurier Golden Hawks 29-14 in Yates Cup play, earning its fifth national semifinal appearance in six seasons. Western will be playing in its 25th national semifinal with a 15-9 record in these meetings. The Mustangs are 4-4 lifetime against teams from the RSEQ and the defunct OQIFC, most recently losing to Laval 27-20 in last year’s Mitchell Cup game.
Mitchell Cup 2023
Mitchell Cup honors are overdue Doug Mitchell, former CFL commissioner (1984-1988), who played for the UBC Thunderbirds and BC Lions. He also created the U SPORTS Athlete of the Year Award (the Lois and Doug Mitchell Awards). This year’s Mitchell Cup game will be played in British Columbia for the first time in history as the host will be the Canada West Champion UBC Thunderbirds. They will face St. FX X-Men who won their third consecutive AUS title.
UBC advances to its first national semifinal game since 2015 after defeating the Alberta Golden Bears 28-27 with a touchdown in the final game of the Hardy Cup. The Thunderbirds are 6-1 all-time in the national semifinals, including a 3-0 mark against Team USA. This will be the third National Cup game after the 1987 Western Cup (beat Laurier 33-31 at Thunderbirds Stadium) and the 1978 Western Cup (beat Laurier 25-16 at Empire Stadium).
Their opponents, St. The FX X-Men won their third consecutive Loney Cup game, defeating the Bishop’s Gaiters 34-23. The X-Men are playing in their sixth national semifinal game since 2015, the most in that span. 54-1 in the 1982 Atlantic Cup game. This is only the second trip to Western Canada for St. FX, following their performance in the 2016 Mitchell Cup game in Calgary.
Game broadcast details as well as previews of these games will be posted on the U SPORTS.ca website later this week.
