Reflections from Rams insiders on the Hardy Cup in Saskatoon
The 88th Biosteel Hardy Cup
It was a crisp -6℃ at the Griffiths Stadium in Saskatoon on Nov. 8 for the annual Biosteel Hardy Cup, running 88 years, a rematch of the 2024 Hardy Cup. The Regina Rams came into the stadium with a season record of 7-2 to compete with the top ranking Huskies who had a record of 8-1 at the end of the regular season.
The Rams were not strangers to being the underdog in this championship. Last year, the Rams beat the Huskies on the same field 19-14, almost a year to the day prior. The Rams came into that game as less likely to win and yet, they pulled it off.
It was a closely fought battle between the two teams. For the first half of the game, the Huskies struggled with major ball mistakes like fumbles and dropped snaps. In the second quarter, the Rams scored two touchdowns: one from first year player Kaleb Senz, and the other from veteran receiver Emmett Steadman. Rookie kicker Ty Gorniak also made two converts and a field goal in that time.
The Rams went into the halftime break with a 17-9 lead and their confidence was high going into the back half of the game. During the beginning of the third quarter, Brandon Wong made a massive catch that put the Rams up by 15. However, it was then the Rams’ turn to make some fumbles.
The Huskies came back at the end of the third quarter and scored two touchdowns in a row, finishing the game with a field goal that left the Rams offence just 0.24 seconds to get into field goal range. Unfortunately for the Rams, as valiantly as they tried with the time allotted, they did not make it close enough to kick and take home the win. The Huskies won 25-24.
Football is fun and football is not forever, you know, just enjoy it while you’re doing it.” -Emmett Steadman
A chat with Emmett Steadman
The touchdown scored by Steadman at the beginning of the second quarter came out of a 10 yard pass from quarterback Owen Sieben. This was Steadman’s first touchdown of the season and it came at a crucial time for the Rams.
Steadman is in his final year with the program and this was his second appearance in the Hardy Cup final. Originally from Regina, Steadman joined the team in 2019, right out of high school, although he missed a season due to the Covid Pandemic in 2020. Now a graduate of the Business Administration program, Steadman reflects about the Hardy Cup final and his time with the Rams as a whole.
The preparation for the Hardy Cup was not much different than any other week for the Rams, but Steadman noted that there was an added pressure due to playing the Huskies. He describes the week like this: “Day zero, we go through all the film prep for the week of practice. Then day one and day two are our work days. Day three is more of a cerebral day: less physical activity, less exerting, and more just getting in the mindset to play the game.”
The Rams had a total of 374 yards and a total 322 passing yards. Steadman contributed 45 yards and three receptions. One of those receptions was the touchdown when Sieben’s pass went right to him in the end zone. Steadman had never had that play include him as the receiver ever before, so the catch caught him off guard.
“I was kind of surprised! It was a play that we had run with other receivers, so I had actually never ran it in practice. So I think the easiest way to describe it was just surprised and astonished,” he reflects.
Over the course of the season, the Rams lost some very key players. Joe Camplin broke his ankle in the home opener, causing the Rams to have to train a new tight-end. Renzel Arinaza tore his quad in the game against the University of British Columbia the week of Oct. 24. Marshall Erichsen, who has broken numerous records this season and has scored 11 touchdowns, tore his Achilles tendon in the semi-final game against Manitoba. Additionally, about half way through the season, the Rams switched quarterbacks from Noah Pelletier to Owen Sieben due to some lacking offense.
Of course, with the constant shifting and roster movements, it can be hard on healthy players on the field but the Rams knew what had to be done to get to the championship for a second time. “We have a strong next-man-up mentality, so the cohesion of the team is great. Although maybe some of those star players went down, we were ready to kind of roll-with-the-punches and deal with that adversity for the next guy.”
The culture is most important, and that’s in any organization, any team. When you build a strong culture, success is just going to come naturally.” -Emmett Steadman
Coach Mark McConkey
One of the biggest keys to the Rams success beyond the athletes has been head coach, Mark McConkey. McConkey became the head coach of the program in 2020 as interim during Steadman’s first season and assumed the full coaching role in 2022.
On McConkey, Steadman says, “He’s easy to play for. He’s really a player’s coach. The things that he does really inspires all of us to, you know, give more effort and kind of try harder and do the small stuff.”
During McConkey’s five year tenure with the Rams program, he has taken the team to back-to-back Hardy Cups, winning one. He has been awarded the 2025 Coach of the Year award through the university, as well as the 2022 Canada West Coach of the Year award.
McConkey’s coaching success is marked not only with his awards and championships, but with the way that the Rams produce professional football players. This season, eight Rams alums played with the Saskatchewan Roughriders.
During Steadman’s five year run with the team, he has seen many players move on to bigger and brighter things, like defensive back Jackson Sombach, who had his first season with the Calgary Stampeders this year.
Steadman notes that, although his elder teammates may be pro-players now, this does not change the way the team functions in the locker room. “It’s almost cyclical in nature. The way the team goes right as you age and get better. You become a mentor to the younger players.”
Steadman added that even though his former teammates are now in the Canadian Football League (CFL), and though he saw them as exceptionally skilled, at the end of the day, they were still just one of the guys. This spoke to the specific type of culture in the Rams dressing room that they work hard to maintain. “The culture is most important, and that’s in any organization, any team. When you build a strong culture, success is just going to come naturally.”
The Future?
Despite the fact that Steadman’s time on the Canada West field has come to a close, he still looks forward to keeping football in his life going forward. Steadman is going into his sixth year of coaching and also plays recreational flag football.
Steadman’s parting words for future and current young Rams players was that, “Football is fun and football is not forever, you know, just enjoy it while you’re doing it.”
The Rams are off now until the start of training camp in August, though the program has already started signing new players for the 2026 season. Hopefully we can see a third straight Hardy Cup appearance next season!
