The 2017 season for the VI Raiders was one of their most memorable in franchise history, which is saying a lot for a team with three Canadian Bowl National Championships.

The man who guided them, head coach Doug Hocking has been named the recipient of the Orange Helmet Award as the Community Coach of the Year from the BC Lions.  He brought the Raiders to within one win of the Canadian Bowl in Windsor.

The Raiders finished the regular season on a three game winning streak and claimed a 6-3-1 record locking down the third seed.   Without a home playoff game, the Raiders were forced to travel off the Island in the Canadian Bowl quarterfinal and head to the storied Apple Bowl to face the second seeded Okanagan Sun who they had tied in the regular season.  With a strong defensive strategy they threw the Sun off their game and forced them into situations they didn’t want to be in.

The result was a Raiders 15-8 victory and a berth in the Canadian Bowl semi-final; the BC Conference Cullen Cup.

Again going on the road the Raiders traveled down to Victoria to face the top ranked and high flying Westshore Rebels.  Just like the week before the Raiders played an outstanding defensive game in the driving rain and came out with a 21-7 victory.  The win punched their ticket to the national semi-final game in Saskatoon.

Though their playoff run was stopped in Saskatoon, the Raiders caught the attention of the entire CJFL and the BC Lions.  

The winning of the Raiders certainly helped bring attention to Hocking as a coach on the field, but it was off the field that put him over the top.  BC Lions Community Relations Director Jamie Taras says, "It's what they do to develop young men, it's not just about the on field performance and those are some of things that stuck out for Doug."

The Orange Helmet Awards ceremony will take place on Friday April 6th at the Westin Bayshore in Vancouver.  Get your popcorn ready as Terrell Owens will be the special guest speaker.