BLOG: Thursday Sacks (3)

Welcome to yet another edition of Thursday Sacks where we look at the top defensive players from last week action. We have a new number #1 as the Calgary’s Dinos leapfrogged Laval’s Rouge et Or who have won their first two games on field goals including last week OT victory over not ranked, Sherbrooke’s Vert et Or at the time. The Western’s Mustangs continue to prove that they have one of the top defenses in country as they beat WLU, 59-9 over the weekend.

Saint Mary Huskies second year linebacker, Brad Herbst.
The AUS season started last Friday night when Mont Alison’s Mounties, the defending AUS champions played Saint Mary Huskies. MTA won the game, 38-6. The only bright spot for SMU was the play of second year linebacker, Herbst. Herbst had seven solos tackles along with three assists for a ground total of 8.5 tackles in the game.He also contribute on a sack that saw a loss of two yards. The Huskies defense is without last year’s president trophy award winner, Jonathan Langa who is now playing in the CFL with the Hamilton Tigercats.

McGill Redmen second year linebacker,Karl Forgues. The Redmen linebacker is a regular guest in this weekly blog posts. The sky is the limit for him as once again he had a great game against the defending Vanier Cup Champions,Unniversity of Montreal’s Carabins on Friday night. Forgues had eight solo tackles and three assists for total of 9.5 tackles in the 42-2 lost. Forgues is second in the CIS for tackles per a game with 10.5. He is starting to become early candidate for RSEQ defense player of the year maybe even CIS defender of the year.

Manitoba Bisons third year linebacker, Dj Lalama.
Lalama last season led the Bisons in tackles with 52.5. He also was ranked tenth in the country for most tackles and tackles per a game.On Friday night against the Calgary’s Dinos,Lalama returned to his last season form as he recorded eight solo tackles and five assists for a total of 10.5 tackles. Lalama’s efforts however were not good enough as the Dinos won the exciting game, 46-38. Lalama is a key player on this Bisons defense as he was voted captain during the preseason.

Alberta Golden Bears third year defensive back, Tak Landry.
The Alberta’s Golden Bears are the most surprising team so far in this early CIS season. The Golden Bears are 2-0 in the toughest conference this season, Canada-West. The only thing is University of Alberta is not get any love from the CIS so far as they did not make the top ten this week, a move that surprised me. The Golden Bears on Friday night beat the Saskatchewan Huskies,38-26. The Golden Bears DB,Landry had ten solo tackles in the victory. The Golden Bears are fourth in the nation in tkl/g with 63.5.

Saint Francis Xavier X-Men third year linebacker, Daniel Tshiamala.
Tshiamala was the only bright spot for the X-Men in their 31-15 opening day lost to Acadia Axemen. Daniel had one of the best games of his career as he had eight solo tackles along with five assists for a total of 10.5 tackles. He also had one interception which was ran back for nine yards. The X-Men are seventh in the category of tkl/g with 57.0.

Concordia Stingers fourth year safety, Mikael Charland.
Charland is one of the most underrated players in the CIS today. He has led the Stingers in tackles for the past two years. On Saturday afternoon in the 38-18 victory over the Bishops Gaiters,he had his greatest game as a Stinger. Charland only had two tackles in the game however, had a fumble recovery and three interceptions for a return of 57 yards. His three interceptions tied a Stinger record for most interceptions in a game. Charland for his incredible game was named CIS defensive player of the week and RSEQ DPOW as well. Charland could be a player that CFL scouts look at to draft in the upcoming CFL draft.

Western Mustangs fourth year defensive lineman, Ricky Osei-Kusi.
The Western Mustangs on defense has held its opponents to score 8.7 points per a game in three games and total of 26 points have been scored on them. They lead the CIS in picks with 8 and sacks with 12.The Western Mustangs in their victory over WLU got a great performance by last season’s OUA first team all-star and second team CIS All-Canadian, Ricky Osei-Kusi. Osei-Kusi has stepped up this season replacing the departed Daryl Waud as the key player on Western defensive line. Osei-Kusi had seven solo tackles and three sacks for a loss of eleven yards in the game against Laurier.

UBC Thunderbirds second year defensive back, Taylor Loffler.
For the second straight week,Loeffler makes my list as he recorded another great performance against Regina Rams on Saturday. Loeffler had six solo tackles and five assists for a total of 8.5 tackles. He also had an interception for a return of two yards in the Thunderbirds,27-20 victory. Loeffler is starting to become one of the best defensive back in the country this year.
Have a good weekend everyone. See you all next Thursday for a new edition of Thursday Morning Sacks.

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