Rifles look to punch Prairie playoff ticket

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 10/10/2025 (251 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

In mid-September, after the Winnipeg Rifles had stumbled to a 2-3 record following their third straight loss — a streak that would reach four in a row later that week — an unprompted head coach Geordie Wilson voiced how confident he was that his team would not only reach the Prairie Conference playoffs, but that there isn’t a team that would want to play his squad in an elimination game.

Fast forward to Sunday at 2 p.m., and the 3-4 Rifles could make that a reality. A win over the Edmonton Huskies (3-4) at Jasper Place Bowl will clinch the program’s first playoff berth since 2022.

“When you’re around them all the time, you kind of sense that there’s some confidence there, like they are believing in themselves,” Wilson told the Free Press Friday. “When I look at our roster, when I compare it to other teams — I really believe this — I think, especially now that we’ve got some key guys back… the only team that will beat us is ourselves.”

The Rifles can also book their ticket with a loss (as long as the Calgary Colts lose to the Saskatoon Hilltops), but the team has harped on how important it is to enter the post-season on a winning note rather than back their way in.

“I do believe that they’re starting to believe that it’s their time,” Wilson added. “And I just think — I hope, but I do believe — we’re going to see the best version of the Winnipeg Rifles we’ve seen in a few weeks this week, and then we can build from there.”

The Rifles are coming off a timely bye week that gave players a chance to lick their wounds and rest up for a playoff run. It has allowed linebacker Cohen McCluskey to return from a four-game absence this week, while running back Kaiden Banfield is set to play his second game since returning from a high-ankle sprain.

The Rifles’ offence as a collective has been respectable, averaging 27.71 points per outing, and the sentiment is that it can find another gear with its star tailback at full health.

“I have the utmost confidence,” said first-year quarterback Riley Element, who leads the Prairie Conference in passing yards with 2,247. “Our packages, how efficient practice is, there’s always mistakes to be had, but when there’s very minimal, you know you’re kind of on a good track.

“This week has been a great week for us, and I have so much confidence in this offence.”

The Rifles and Huskies will clash for the first time on Sunday. The familiarity between these clubs is faint, and adding to the unknown is that the Huskies endured changes to their coaching staff during the season.

Wilson noted running back Chris Katula will be key to stopping. Katula has only logged 24 rushing attempts this season, but is averaging 5.5 yards per tote. He’s making an even greater impact on special teams, where he’s averaging 29.6 yards per return.

“He’s a pretty good player and he’s a good kick returner, so we’re gonna try to stay away from him in kick returns and stuff. The difference, I guess, from a prep perspective with these guys versus other teams, is they’re very special teams oriented,” Wilson said.

Edmonton, led by a young quarterback, has been inconsistent on offence at times. To supplement that, they haven’t been afraid to pull out the bag of tricks to move the ball. The Rifles have prepared for surprise onside kicks, pooch kicks, fake punts and reverses on kickoffs, among other trick plays that the Huskies have used this season.

“Our defence is feeling really good,” said linebacker Kyler Banfield.

“A lot of our games this year have been shut out up until halftime, and then after halftime, the defence kind of falls apart a bit. So, the bye week, we’ve been really working on coming back out after halftime, firing up and changing a couple more things. We know our defence has the capability of being the best in (the Prairie Conference), we just got to execute all four quarters, every snap.”

Indeed, the Rifles have harped on putting together a four-quarter effort in the season finale, something they haven’t done yet this season. Wilson noted it’s been the third quarter, coming out of halftime, that has ailed the team.

The Rifles have been outscored 52-24 in the third frame. Should they avoid a collapse, there is a sense that this game is theirs for the taking.

“I wish I had an explanation for it,” Wilson said, suggesting the downtime at the break gets his team out of rhythm.

“One of the things we’re gonna do this week is we’re gonna go in quickly and we’ll talk to the kids, make any adjustments we have to make, and take them back out on the field, and we’re gonna go through a warm up, similar to what we do pre-game to see if that gets them back locked in, because it just seems that 15 minutes is too long for them, like they kind of lose their focus, and that’s been our biggest challenge.”

joshua.frey-sam@freepress.mb.ca

X: @jfreysam