Photo Credit: Freeze Frame Photos
Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario — The Sault College Cougars continued their impressive start to the 2026 Ontario Football Conference season on Saturday, August 22nd, rolling to a convincing 64-13 victory over the Quinte Riptides at Superior Heights Field.
The Cougars entered the matchup with a 1-0 record after opening the season with a 40-22 road victory over the Hamilton Hurricanes. Quinte arrived in Sault Ste. Marie looking for its first win of the season after suffering a 22-3 loss to the London Beefeaters in Belleville.
Sault College wasted little time getting on the scoreboard.
At the nine-minute mark of the opening quarter, rookie Rylan Varcoe rushed for a two-yard touchdown to put the Cougars ahead 7-0. Nick Vecchio added the extra point.
The Riptides answered at 4:11 of the first quarter when quarterback Logan Vesingi-Cain connected with Evan Benoit-Fray on an 11-yard touchdown pass. Christopher Lanning converted the extra point to tie the game at 7-7.
The Cougars regained the lead early in the second quarter. Veteran running back Sam Mustaspha broke through the Quinte defensive line for a four-yard touchdown run at 14:55, with Vecchio adding the convert to make it 14-7.
Sault College rookie quarterback Nick Jokic then kept the ball himself, rushing three yards for another Cougar major at 8:43. Vecchio’s extra point extended the lead to 21-7.
With 95 seconds remaining in the first half, Jokic connected with veteran receiver Gabe Barkley on a one-yard touchdown pass, putting the Cougars up 28-7 following another successful Vecchio convert.
The Cougars added another point before halftime when a Riptides player was tackled in his own end zone, giving Sault College a safety and a 29-7 advantage heading into the break. Vecchio had also missed a 24-yard field goal attempt just before the end of the half.
Sault College continued to pour it on in the second half.
At 4:53 of the third quarter, veteran Afonso Kiala broke free for a 55-yard touchdown run. Vecchio’s convert increased the Cougar lead to 36-7.
Jokic added another touchdown at 5:57, carrying the ball four yards into the end zone. Vecchio’s extra point made it 43-7.
Just six seconds into the fourth quarter, Jokic found the end zone again, rushing one yard for his third rushing touchdown of the contest. Vecchio converted to give Sault College a 50-7 advantage.
Rookie Mathieu Berube then hauled in a 10-yard touchdown pass at 12:42 of the quarter, with another Vecchio convert making it 57-7.
The Cougars weren’t finished. Rookie quarterback Hayden Carriere connected with Varcoe on a 17-yard touchdown pass at 9:40, giving Varcoe his second major of the afternoon. Vecchio’s convert pushed the score to 64-7.
Quinte would add a late touchdown when quarterback Stefon Morgan connected with Ethan Smith on a nine-yard touchdown pass, bringing the final score to 64-13.
Jokic was a major factor in the Cougars’ offensive attack. He completed five of eight pass attempts for 61 yards while adding three touchdowns on the ground and seven carries for 29 rushing yards.
Carriere completed three of four passes for 40 yards and also added three carries for 69 yards.
Emerson Peterkin led the Cougars’ passing attack, completing 17 of 22 attempts for 264 yards.
On the ground, Mustaspha finished with 87 yards on 12 carries, while Varcoe found the end zone twice in the victory.
For Quinte, Vesingi-Cain finished with nine completions on 19 attempts, while Morgan carried the ball three times for 24 yards.
On the defensive side, Cougar veteran George Limb recorded three tackles, while rookie Russell Beaubrun finished with three tackles and one assisted tackle. Veteran Daikaden Gauthier added four tackles for Sault College. For the Riptides, Chidubem Attama led the way with nine tackles and two assisted tackles, Nathan Clarke recorded nine tackles and one assisted tackle, and Max MacDonald added six tackles in the Quinte loss.
With the 64-13 victory, the Cougars improve to 2-0 on the 2026 season and continue to build momentum as they prepare for their next challenge.
Sault College will return to the road on Saturday, August 29th, when the Cougars travel to the nation’s capital for a 1:00 p.m. matchup against the Ottawa Sooners.
After two games, the Cougars have shown that they are ready to make noise in their second season of OFC football, and the road test in Ottawa will provide another opportunity to continue their perfect start to the 2026 campaign.
