The season is upon us and week 1 features an exciting slate of games in the Scottish Division. The Heriot-Watt Wolverines are set to make the short trip to Glasgow to face the Tigers, with both sides featuring new coaches and a fresh outlook.
Glasgow’s staff remains largely intact from last season, bar the in-house promotion of Mikey Reynolds to Offensive Coordinator. Reynolds will look to push the young crop of players to the next level this year as they have a solid year of experience under their belts. Young quarterbacks Zaigham Askari and Reece Aris will vie to replace veteran David Duffin and get the Tigers’ passing attack clicking.
Senior player Josh Barran said “A lot of our returning players now have a full season behind their belt and some summer football experience so I’m feeling very confident we will be able to gel as a squad and really challenge the top team in the division.”
Another bright spot on the Tigers offense is running back Benson Murray, whose strong running style punished opposing teams last season.
Mikey Reynolds said “Benson Murray made a real impact as a rookie so I’m really keen to see what he can do in his second year.”
The defense has always been a strength for Glasgow with standouts such as safety Sands Christie. They always find ways to turn up the pressure on opposing offenses and get to the quarterback.
Reynolds said “Vinny Peteranna had a great season and really grew into his role within the linebacker corps as things went on.”
On the other sideline, the HWU coaching staff has seen a full turnover from last year. Daryl Thomson returns as Head Coach after a short stint with the University of Edinburgh. Thomson coached for the Wolverines two years ago under previous Head Coach Don Edmonston before making the jump across town.
Joining him on defence is Stewart Winton, who was on the same staff under Edmonston. Winton has recently completed a successful series as a special teams coach for Team Scotland where he coached Wolverines standout Jamie Brown. The pair will endeavour to lock down a defence that has looked woeful for the last couple of seasons.
Leading Heriot-Watt’s offense is veteran quarterback Dylan Jones. The left-handed Welshman has been a staple of Wolverines football and led impressive wins against Stirling and Edinburgh last season. Reminiscent of Vanderbilt’s ageless wonder Diego Pavia, he returns for another year, adding some stability in an otherwise turbulent squad.
Glasgow got the best of HWU in both fixtures last season, and the Wolverines will be out for revenge. Kickoff is at 12:30 at Gannochy Sports Centre.
Click here for the full interview with Coach Mikey Reynolds.
Image c/o Duncolm Photography
