FB: Road to 81st Hardy Cup opens September 1

Evan Daum, Canada West Communications

Highlights:

• The 2017 Canada West football season opens Friday, September 1 with all six conference teams in action
• Football fans will have a new way to consume Canada West football beginning this season, with all 27 conference football games available as condensed games as part of a revamped Canada West TV
• The 81^st Hardy Cup goes Saturday, November 11, with conference semifinal action scheduled for Saturday, November 4

EDMONTON – The road to the 81^st Hardy Cup officially opens Friday, September 1, as Canada West unveiled its 2017 conference football schedule Tuesday.

All six CW competitors will be in action on opening night, as the Saskatchewan Huskies travel to take on the Manitoba Bisons, the Regina Rams host the UBC Thunderbirds, and the Alberta Golden Bears entertain the defending Hardy Cup champion Calgary Dinos in the Alberta capital.

COMPLETE CW FOOTBALL SCHEDULE

For fans waiting for a rematch of last year's Hardy Cup between Calgary and UBC, the two team's lone regular season meeting of 2017 is slated for Friday, September 29 at Thunderbird Stadium in Vancouver.

A total of 24 conference regular season games and a trio of Hardy Cup playoff games are once again on tap this year, with all 27 games available live and on-demand on Canada West TV. The CW season concludes Saturday, November 11 with the 81^st Hardy Cup.

Canada West TV elevates football coverage

Football fans will have a new way to consume CW football beginning this season on Canada West TV, as all 27 conference football games will be available as condensed games, as part of the conference's revamped streaming site.

Following in the footsteps of other sports properties, who have worked to provide content to fans in more compact and engaging packages, Canada West is pleased to offer condensed games to fans looking to catch up on all the key action from around the conference.

A full list of Canada West TV packages available for the 2017-18 season, including which packages will provide access to the condensed football games, will be announced in August.

U SPORTS national playoffs

For the second consecutive season, CW is the proud host of a U SPORTS national semifinal, as the 2017 Mitchell Bowl is headed to Western Canada when the eventual Hardy Cup champions will host the top team from Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ).