The 2010 AFL AGM was held on Saturday evening with some interesting developments!  

Two new teams were accepted as expansion franchises in Edmonton and Sherwood Park to bring our league's total number of teams up to NINE! 

This means we will have BALANCED schedule of playing each team once for a total of eight games.  Four home games and four away games.

the Bucs Open the 2010 Season at HOME vs the

Former WInnipeg Blue Bombers Head coach Mike Kelly wasn't out of work for long....fresh of his arrest in Philadelphia and firing from the Bombers, Mike Kelly was picked up by the Red Deer Buccaneers private jet and flown in for an emergency meeting. 

After a few hours of negotiating, the Bucs were able to aquire the Head Coaching services of Mr. Kelly for the 2010 through 2099 seasons. 

Buccaneers representative Corey Pusey (pictured above with Mr. Kelly) noted that negotiations went well and he even got 2 strands of beads out of the deal! 

Keep checking back to reddeerbuccaneers.com for further updates and exciting NEW happenings from our team and around the league!

**Obviously the above is a parody, not true and made purely in jest and good humor.** 

Congratulations to Greg Thompson, Jay Becker, Murray Greer and Jeff Durback, current and former Buccaneers players who helped coach the Red Deer Pee Wee Steelers to the PROVINCIAL Championship this fall! 

Congratulations to Greg Thompson, Jay Becker, Murray Greer and Jeff Durback (pictured above), current and former Buccaneers players who helped coach the Red Deer PeeWee Steelers to the League Championship this fall! 

Also congrats to Corey Pusey (PeeWee Hornets) , Adam Donovan (Notre Dame Cougars) , Greg Esteves, Riley Quance and Brian Ross (Lacombe Rams) for helping their respective teams to very high levels of success in their leagues!

Missing from the pictures is Jamie Blinkhorn who helped coach the Notre Dame Jr Cougars.  Aaron Sheppard, Devon Hand & Kyle Liptak who coach the Lindsey Thurber Raiders (HS) and Josh Sorensen who coaches the Hunting Hills Lightning (HS). Apologies to those Bucs who assist with other teams but were not mentioned.   

  Red Deer Buccaneers truly believe that helping develop minor football and high school football players will pay dividends in the future, both for the football community in Central Alberta and for the Buccaneers! 

The Red Deer Touch Football Association held it's Playoff Weekend and DIERDORF emerged as champions!  No less than SEVEN Bucs players help contribute to the 22-1 victory over Barnzee's Balls Deep in the championship final! 

You gotta love this game!

Bucs pictured in top row: Dave Henderson, Curtis Dreger, Josh Achtemichuk, Jason Adams & Rory Watson. 

Bottom row:  Dave Hanni & Russ Hart.

The Bucs practice jerseys were our secret weapons!

The Red Deer Buccaneers Football Club had a less than successful 2009 season, but we did have a few bright spots.  Our new offensive linemen played well...we found some excellent new receivers and DB's...and we got consistently brilliant play from our tailback position in #27 Kenton Poelzer. 

On Sunday night, the Alberta Football League gathered for the season wrap up meeting.  2009 AFL all-stars were debated and decided as well as the league's major awards.  Kenton Poelzer was front and centre in those discussions and was honored by his peers in 3 different categories.

1st Team All-Star Running Back

AFL Offensive Player of the Year

AFL MOST VALUABLE PLAYER

That is quite an accomplishment for a player on a 1-6-1 team!

CONGRATULATIONS  KENTON!

The Red Deer Buccaneers Football Club gathered one last time in 2009 to honor the best of the best during the 8th Annual Bucs Awards Banquet on Saturday afternoon.

Shark's Garage was the host and it was a packed house as attendees enjoyed a beef buffet, awards ceremony and highlight video - along with the camaraderie and fellowship of teammates! Congratulations to all our 2009 Award Winners!

Volunteer of the Year:  Shauna Durette & Lisa Lynch

Bucs Pride Award:  DB # 18 - Joe Brooks

Higher Level Award:  QB # 7 - Andrew Stannix

Rookie of the Year: DB # 3  - Jay Pike

MVP w/Least Recognition: DL #52 - Murray Greer

O-Lineman of the Year: # 61 Dave Derksen

D-Lineman of the Year: #95 - Matt Vandale

Special Teams Player of the Year: #89 WR/P Alex Rinehart

Defensive Player of the Year: #71 LB - Curtis Dreger

Offensive Player of the Year: #27 TB - Kenton Poelzer

Most Valuable Player: #83 - Jamie Blinkhorn

Thanks again to all players, coaches, volunteers, family fans and friends who supported Buccaneers Football in 2009! 

SEE YOU NEXT SEASON!! 

Check out pics from the banquet on our Photo Page

With the so called experts predicting a massive blow-out at the hands of the mighty Calgary Wolfpack, the Bucs showed what they can do when they actually execute the playbook properly in a THRILLING game on Saturday night!  Unfortunately, the Bucs eventually fell to the national champions 56-49 in an old-west shoot out!

Red Deer scored first on an 11 yard TD pass from QB Josh Achtemichuk to SB Josh Sorensen on the first drive of the game to go up 7-0 early.  Then Achtemichuk hit WR Randy "Lahey" on a 15 yard TD strike to make it 14-0 at the end of the first quarter. 

The Wolfpack finally got going and marched to a TD to make it 14-7.  But then Achtemichuk hit Lawrence again, this time on a 64 yard BOMB to go up 21-7.  The Pack answered back with a TD drive to make it 21-14, then got another TD to tie things at 21.  Achtemichuk wasn't done yet and hit TB Kenton Poelzer on a seam up the middle and Poelzer did the rest on route to a 63 yard TD pass and run to put the Bucs up 28-21.  But then the Pack answered right back again and put up another TD with very little time left on the clock til the half to tie things up 28-28 at the half! 

Another BIG quarter from the Bucs saw Achtemichuk hit Poelzer on a short 11 yard TD strike and RUN another one in HIMSELF - while the Wolfpack got a pair of field goals to make it 42-34 Bucs at the end of the 3rd quarter. 

It set up a wild 4th quarter that saw the Wolfpack score twice with a 2-point convert to go up 49-42 and take the lead for the first time in the ball game.  The Bucs needed to score with time ticking away and got a BIG TD!  AGAIN the Achtemichuk to Lawrence combination proved deadly as they hooked up for a 31 yard TD to tie things up at 49-49 with 3 minutes left on the clock.  All the Bucs Defence had to do was hold on for one solid stop.  But the national champs are that for a reason...and they marched down the field, eating away at the clock and eventually punching a TD in to go up 56-49 with 55.5 seconds to go in the game.  That just wasn't enough time and the Bucs comeback attempt fell short, as a Hail Mary pass attempt fell to the ground at the Wolfpack 5 yard line as time expired.

** UPDATE WITH ACCURATE STATS  **

WR Randy Lawrence finished the game with 10 catches for 240 yards and 3 TD's

SB Josh Sorensen had 6 catches for 84 yards and 1 TD

TB Kenton Poelzer had 6 catches for 99 yards and 2 TD's as well as  43 yards on 9 carries. 

QB Josh Achtemichuk had the Game of his Life, hitting 72% of his passes. 

He was 24 of 33 for 441 yards, 6 TD's, 1 INT and 1 Rushing TD! 

Defensively, LB Curtis Dreger was a machine with 5 solo and 7 assisted tackles.

  DB Darren Strohschein had a busy night too, with 4 solo and 8 assisted tackles! 

DB Jay Pike - in addition to hitting all 7 PAT's, had 4 solo and 3 assisted tackles to go along with an interception and 2 big knockdowns. 

DB Jeremy Makila had a nice 38 yard interception return

The loss knocks the Red Deer Buccaneers out of the playoffs for the 2009 season.  However, if this game was any indication, the rest of the AFL better watch out for 2010! 

The Bucs wish to thank everyone who came out to support them during this tough season and promise those fans that better things are just around the corner! 

Special thanks to family members who sacrifice their summers so that we can play the game we love so much!    

With a little help from the Grande Prairie Drillers...and a LOT of effort from themselves, the Red Deer Buccaneers MIGHT just be in the 2009 AFL Playoff Picture! 

The Bucs need the home town Grande Prairie Drillers to defeat the visiting Calgary Gators on Saturday night if they have any chance to make the playoffs this season.  That, coupled with a Bucs win against the Calgary Wolfpack at Great Chief Park on Saturday evening, will put the Bucs in the post-season for the first time in 4 years! 

However, the Bucs have NEVER beaten the reigning National Champion Wolfpack and got smoked 39-6 in the first meeting with the 'Pack earlier this year.  Also, the Wolfpack need to beat the Bucs to have a chance at first place and a bye week in the first round of playoffs, so they're coming with everything they have - which is a LOT. 

BUT, losing streaks eventually end and this Saturday's Fan Appreciation Game might as well be the game to turn things around.  In 2008, the Bucs gave the Wolfpack a scare, barely losing to the eventual National Champs in a close game in Red Deer.  Plus, THIS season, the Bucs almost beat the only 2 teams that DID beat the Wolfpack.  So it will be an interesting match-up.

 If the Bucs play a near perfect game, and the Champs shrug them off as a speed bump an the way to first place, then an UPSET may just be in the making. 

The only ones who believe that upset can happen...are the Buccaneers players themselves. 

The Red Deer Buccaneers held off a strong, determined and hard-hitting Parkland Panthers squad on Saturday night and are now UNDEFEATED in the last two games.   Not that the Bucs WON...it's just that they didn't lose.  Which means that, yes, it was a DRAW.  The Bucs and Panthers ended up TIED at 24 -24 at the end of regulation play!  AFL by-laws state that overtime will only be played in a play-off game, so for the second week in a row, the Buccaneers have a strange - but not undesirable - result.

The Bucs started off with a BANG as QB Josh Achtemichuk hit WR Alex Rinehart on a short pass, which Rinehart turned into a 103 yard TOUCHDOWN early in the first quarter that put the Bucs up 7-0.  However, Achtemichuk then offered up back to back INT's on his next 2 possessions to give the Panthers excellent field position immediately after - which resulted in the Panthers punching it in from a short distance to tie things at 7-7 in the first.

Achtemichuk then hit TB Kenton Poelzer on a flare pass and Poelzer took it 76 yards for another score to put the Bucs up 14-7 in the second.  The Panthers drove down and kicked a field goal for 3 points, and then registered 1 more point as the kick-off went through the endzone to make it 14-11 at the half. 

Both teams traded big hits and field position in the 3rd quarter with the Bucs going ahead even more with a 25 yard Touchdown run by Poelzer to go up 21-11.  The Panthers answered back with a long pass to the 2 yard line and short TD run to make it 21-18 by the end of the 3rd quarter. 

The Panthers then tied it up at 21-21 mid-forth quarter on another field goal.  With less than 5 minutes on the clock, the Bucs drove 74 yards and were JUST short of a TD and had to attempt a field goal to take the lead.  DB/K Jay Pike's 5 yard field goal was good and the Bucs went up 24-21 with 1:06 remaining in the game.  The Bucs needed only 1 solid stop to get the ball back and win!  However, the Panthers had a few tricks up their sleeves.  With the Bucs forcing the Panthers into a 3rd and LONG situation, they faked the punt and got the first down by the nose of the football on a fantastic catch to continue the drive.  With less than 10 seconds on the clock, the Panther's QB was desperately looking for someone to throw to, gave up and scrambled out of the pocket on the run.  After he ran out of bounds, a Bucs defender hit him late.  A 15-yard unnecessary roughness penalty was assessed to the Bucs, and as the clock ticked down to 0:00, the Panthers hit a 38-yard field goal to tie the game. 

The tie gives the Bucs a SINGLE POINT in the AFL standings.

A Bucs WIN on the last game of the regular season against the tough Calgary Wolfpack, coupled with a Calgary Gators Loss in Grande Prairie, will put the Bucs in the playoffs for the first time in 4 years!   

A wacky, windy night held a LOT or surprises for the Bucs as they came away with their FIRST WIN of the season in Edmonton on Saturday night -  a 23-13 victory over the home town Seahawks. 

The Seahawks opened the scoring on the FIRST PLAY of the game with a 98 yard kick-off return touchdown to go ahead 7-0 with barely 20 seconds off the clock!  The Bucs were badly outplayed by Edmonton, registering only 45 total yards and 1 first down in the 1st quarter to go along with 2 turnovers.    An endzone interception by QB Andrew Stannix and a botched punt by Alex Rinehart. 

Then a WICKED LIGHTNING STORM suspended play for the better part of half an hour until the officials deemed it safe to continue to play.   

In the second quarter, the Bucs finally started to move the ball with Kenton Poelzer running in a 37 yard TD with less a minute left in the half to make it 7-7. 

In the very first play of the second half, Stannix tossed an INT DEEP in his own end of the field.  4 plays later, the Seahawks were in for their second TD of the game, but missed the point after to make it 13-7 Seahawks.

But, the Bucs DID move the ball well after that, getting a 10-yard field goal from DB/K Jay Pike and a 27-yard touchdown toss from SB Ryan Otto to WR Marc Bartolf right at the end of the quarter to make it 17-13 Bucs after three periods.   

On the ensuing kickoff to start the forth quarter, Mike Matheson jumped on a loose ball and recovered a fumble to set the Bucs up in great field position!  Kenton Poelzer ran in another touchdown from 11 yards out, (PAT failed) to make it 23-13 Bucs lead.  After a quick 2 and out by the Seahawks, a GIGANTIC WIND STORM blew threw Clarke Stadium, spreading debris and garbage all over the filed.  Lights blew up, soccer nets were blowing across the field and the football goalposts nearly snapped!  The officials called the game with 11:30 left in the 4th quarter, when evacuation notices were given by authorities.  The Bucs were up at the time, deep in the 2nd half, so they were awarded the victory! 

QB Andrew Stannix went the whole way going 12 of 18 for 125 yards, 0 TD's, 3 INT's. 

RB Kenton Poelzer had a GREAT day with 15 carries for 138 yards and 2 TD's!

SB Ryan Otto had 4 catches for 33 yards and went

1 for 1 passing for 27 yards, 1 TD. 

LB Curtis Dreger had 3 solo and 3 assisted tackles, one for a major loss, as well as 1 Punt Return for 15 yards. 

DL Matt Vandale had 4 solo and 1 assisted tackle, 1 for a loss.

LB Riley Quance and WR Mike Matheson had fumble recoveries.

The CMFL National Champion Calgary Wolfpack came to town on Saturday night and showed the crowd exactly WHY they are the champs in a 39-6 rout of the home town Buccaneers.  The Wolfpack piled up 587 yards on the Bucs (527 through the air) picking on a young, inexperienced secondary.  Defensively, the Wolfpack picked off 3 Bucs passes, made several knockdowns and even blocked a field goal attempt. 

The Bucs, however, had their BEST passing game of the season, throwing for 263 yards! 

Both available Bucs QB's shared equal playing time with Greg Thompson getting the start and going 3 of 9 for 27 yards and 2 INT's, while Andrew Stannix was 16 of 22 for 202 yards and 1 INT.  SB Jamie Blinkhorn continued the season at 100% completions going 1 for 1 for 34 yards. 

Blinkhorn was a force to be reckoned with, totaling 92 yards on 5 catches to go along with 2 punt returns for 22 yards and an electric 49 yard kick-off return!  Blinkhorn also hit 2 of 3 field goal attempts of 35 and 21 yards.  His 3rd attempt was blocked.

SB Corey Pusey had 4 catches for 38 yards.

TB Kenton Poelzer had a busy day playing both offence and defence!  Offensively, Poelzer had 20 yards on 6 carries and 37 yards on 3 receptions.  Defensively, he had 2 solo and 4 assisted tackles, a knockdown and an interception!  His brother - DB  Keegan Poelzer - had a great night on defence with 5 solo and 2 assisted tackles and a 36 yard interception return! 

DB Darren Strohschein had a monster night with 4 solo and 6 assisted tackles!    

On special teams, both FB Geoff Rambaut and FB Brent Hamilton had fumble recoveries!     

The weekend's game also marked the FIRST time this season that the Bucs were EVEN in the giveaway / takeaway department.  3 INT's and 1 Turnover on downs against, compared to 2 INT's and 2 Fumble recoveries FOR. 

Baby steps people......baby steps.     

Three out of  FIVE Buccaneers turnovers lead directly to 17 points as the Bucs lost again, this time on the road, to the Grande Prairie Drillers 23-13 on Saturday evening. 

The heavily favored home squad was actually trailing the roster-depleted Bucs 6-3 at half time on the strength of two Jay Pike field goals of 15 and 22 yards. 

The Bucs conceded a safety touch early in the third quarter to make the score 6-5. 

Midway through the quarter, Bucs QB Josh

Achtemichuk tossed an interception and the Drillers scored a touchdown on their first offensive series after that to make it 13-6. 

But then Achtemichuk rallied the troops and led his team down the field and answered back with a 5 yard touchdown run by Ian Keetch to tie it up at 13-13! 

Shortly after that, however, Keetch fumbled the ball away inside his own zone and the Drillers capitalized with a TD once again to go up 20-13 with 22 seconds left in the third. 

Another Achtemichuk interception late in the fourth quarter put the Drillers in good field position where they kicked a FG to make it 23-13. 

QB Josh Achtemichuk was 10 of 22 for 149 yards 0 TD's, 3 INT's

RB Ian Keetch had 12 carries for 105 yards, 1 TD, 1 Fumble lost.

RB Kenton Poelzer had 13 carries for 42 yards, 1 Fumble.

Poelzer also had 2 catches for 44 yards. 

WR Adam Donovan had 3 catches for 36 yards.

DL Matt Vandale had a MONSTER game with 3 solo and 3 assisted tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, a half sack (shared with DL Murray Greer) and a fumble recovery!  PLUS Matt played on the O-line and on every kick and punt cover and return team!

DB Jeremy Makila had a great day with 2 solo, 2 assisted tackles as well as a 61-yard interception return!    

Yes, Virginia, There IS a Santa Claus!

He wears a bright red uniform and black helmet and he gift-wrapped a 27-6 victory for the Calgary Gators at Great Chief Park on Saturday night. 

The Red Deer Buccaneers were in a gracious, unselfish and giving mood Saturday as they committed SEVEN TURNOVERS and gave the visitors their first win of the season while dropping to 0-3 themselves. 

A SOLID defensive effort resulted in NEITHER team recording a first down or any points in the first quarter to make it 0-0 after 15 minutes. 

The Gators didn't earn any 1st downs in the second quarter either, while the QB Andrew Stannix finally started to move the ball with key receptions to SB Josh Sorensen and Ryan Otto.  However,  Stannix fumbled the ball 3 times (lost possession on 2 of them),  threw an interception and failed on a 3rd down gamble to turn the ball over 4 times in the quarter.  Bad snaps were the cause of 2 fumbles and a missed field goal attempt.  The resulting turnovers gave the Gators excellent field position resulting in a short TD pass and field goal to make it 10-0 Gators at the half. 

A QB change to Josh Achtemichuk in the 3rd quarter didn't make much difference as the Bucs again failed to record a first down, while the Gators sustained a couple of drives and scored on a long TD pass and another field goal to make it 20-0 after three quarters. 

Achtemichuk found his rhythm in the forth and drove the ball well.  However, RB Kenton Poelzer fumbled the ball away on the one yard line on his way to the end zone to mark the first turnover of the 4th quarter.  A solid defensive stop gave the Bucs the ball back and Achtemichuk found WR Alex Rinehart in the endzone for a 18-yard TD pass.  But then ANOTHER bad snap caused Jamie Blinkhorn to miss the PAT.  That made the score 20-6.

The Gators didn't record a first down in the entire quarter, however, a missed assignment on the Dline opened up a huge hole and Gator RB #20 (no player roster given) ran through and down the field for another long TD to make it 27-6.  Some dropped passes, a failed 3rd down gamble and an Achetmichuk INT rounded out the other two turnovers in the quarter. 

QB Andrew Stannix was 10 of 16 for 97 yards, 1 INT, 2 Fumbles lost.

QB Josh Achtemichuk was 9 of 18 for 115 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT, 1 Sack. 

RB Kenton Poelzer had 15 carries for 54 yards, 1 Fumble lost.  Poelzer also had 5 catches for 54 yards.

SB Josh Sorensen had 4 catches for 49 yards.

Alex Rinehart had 2 catches for 34 yards and 1 TD.

Defensively, LB Brad Smith had 4 solo 1 assisted tackles and 1 for a loss. 

DL Matt Vandale had 3 solo and 1 assisted tackles, 1 for a loss. 

LB Curtis Dreger blocked a field goal. 

Anemic offence and porous defence lead to another disappointing loss for the Red Deer Buccaneers on Saturday night as the visiting Edmonton Stallions hammed the Bucs 48-13.  An uneventful first quarter resulted in a 3-0 Stallions lead, however, the floodgates opened up as Edmonton scored 3 unanswered touchdowns in the second to make it 24-0 at the half.  A quick Stallions score on a long pass made it 31-0 in the third before Bucs RB Kenton Poelzer scored on a 1 yard run (Blinkhorn convert) to make it 31-7 late in the quarter.  The 4th quarter was back and forth as the Stallions scored on 2 more long pass and run plays, split up by an Andrew Stannix to Randy Lawrence 25 yard TD pass for the Bucs. (Blinkhorn PAT failed) to make it 45-13.  The Stallions then added another field goal to round out the scoring at 48-13.  The Buccaneers return teams were, again, the shining star as rookie receiver Mike Harris collected 109 yards on 4 kick-off returns for a 27-yard average, while Jamie Blinkhorn blazed to 72 yards on 2 kick-off returns for a 36-yard average.  RB Kenton Poelzer was the offensive workhorse for the Bucs with 14 carries for 88 yards and 1 TD along with 3 receptions for 37 yards.  Rookie receiver Randy Lawrence led all receivers with 48 yards and 1 TD.  QB Greg Thompson was 4 of 12 for 42 yards 0 TD's, 2 INT's.  QB Andrew Stannix was 9 of 18 for 99 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT, 2 sacks.

Defensively, rookie Lineman, Blake Jacobs made his presence known with constant pressure and solid play on his very first day at at Nose Tackle.  DB Devon Mappin had a busy day with 3 solo and 5 assisted tackles and a knockdown.  LB Riley Quance was all over the field with 7 assisted tackles and rookie DB's Jay Pike and Jivi Sidu each had an interception.  Sidu also recorded a knockdown. 

Over 100 potential players showed up at the Red Deer Buccaneers 2009 Annual General Meeting and Registration night!  Plenty of new faces were told what to expect to be a Buccaneer.  The coaches were introduced and their ideas and philosophies were discussed along with spring camp, the rookie party and the regular season schedule. 

Then, everyone was invited for a beverage at the Bucs NEW Pub Sponsor, SHARK'S GARAGE!  Thanks to Sharks and the Red Deer Lodge for their support.  You don't know what you've gotten yourself into! 

The Alberta Football League Annual General Meeting was held in Spruce Grove over the weekend.  Among other things, the 2009 GAME SCHEDULE was presented, debated and approved. 

The Bucs will open their 2009 regular season AT HOME against the AFL championship runner-up, the Lloydminster Vandals.  We will have 4 regular season home games, and 4 regular season away games.  We have also secured a home Exhibition game against to start the season off.  So, essentially, the Bucs will have 2 MORE games than last season guaranteed.  We will obviously work towards playing MORE games  - those would be PLAYOFF games.    

No new teams made expansion bids, so it'll be all the same teams doing battle in 2009. 

The 2009 schedule has been posted on our Schedule Page.  Keep in mind all dates and times are tentative pending confirmation from the City of Red Deer as well as the host teams for away games.   

Bucs Head Coach Dave Hanni was retained as AFL Vice President as well as League Treasurer. 

Watch for the Red Deer Buccaneers Annual General Meeting and Registration night coming VERY SOON!  All potential players, coaches, sponsors and interested parties are welcome to attend.

The 2008 Alberta Football League All-Star teams were announced over the weekend! 

Congratulations to THREE Buccaneers who were chosen by their peers for an outstanding season! 

Dave Henderson is a 2nd Team All-Star at Defensive End.

Kerry Lynch picked up a 2nd Team All-Star for Defensive Tackle.

Kenton Poelzer was honored as 2nd team All Star at Tail Back.

Poelzer was also a 2nd team All-Star at Punt Returner.

Great Job Bucs!