It’s easy to tell which member of the Saskatoon Hilltops is Josh Ewanchyna.
Just look for the mop of brown hair streaming out the back of his helmet as he cuts his way up the field.
“The long hair is a great thing,” said the third year back, who pulls it up into a man-bun for interviews.
“I mean I don't think it's slowing me down a little bit. The worst part is you know someone grabbing onto it, that would probably be the biggest issue with that.”
The Hilltops don’t share the same view as, say, the New York Yankees when it comes to the length of players’ hair, so the look is just fine with head coach Tom Sargeant.
"He runs like his hair is on fire, and we're okay with that,” he said.
“We want our players to be who they are, and what they feel they need to be. As long as they keep making plays and running fast and running strong, we’re good.”
Running with speed will come naturally for Ewanchyna, who rushed for 286 yards on just 31 carries in his second year with the Hilltops, an average of 9.2 yards per attempt - the best mark in the conference among those with at least 30 touches.
Those touches should skyrocket now that he’s the Blue and Gold’s top back, with the graduation of Logan Fischer and the departure of Adam Machart to the Saskatchewan Huskies.
“There’s big shoes to fit this year,” Ewanchyna said. “I knew there was a little bit of extra pressure added on top of that, so I just try to put myself in the best position, best shape I can to help carry this team to the finals.”
“He was the top 18-year-old in Saskatchewan two years ago,” said Sargeant, who believes Ewanchyna will be one of the best running backs in Canadian junior football this season.
“He is a high end football player. He wants the ball, he's used to getting the ball, he's used to making big plays. He's going to have a knockout year, I guarantee you.”
