CALGARY β Theyβre a young team with 10 new starters on defence and missing the reigning conference MVP in quarterback Eric Dzwilewski β but the University of Calgary Dinos remain undefeated and can wrap up first place Friday night in Saskatoon.
Kickoff between the third-ranked Dinos (5-0) and the No. 6 Huskies (4-1) goes at 7 p.m. MT from Griffiths Stadium, live on Shaw TV and CanadaWest.tv.
By virtue of their 36-24 win over Saskatchewan back in Week 3 at McMahon Stadium, the Dinos have the upper hand in the season series and would clinch the tiebreaker with the Huskies with another victory Friday night. Calgary already holds the tiebreaker over the Manitoba Bisons β the only other team that could catch them in the standings if they were to win Friday β by virtue of their 48-24 win in the only meeting of the season. A first place finish for the Dinos would be their third consecutive and give them home field advantage all the way to the CIS Mitchell Bowl, which this year pits the Ontario champion against the Canada West champion.
The Dinos enter the game on a four-game win streak against the Huskies, including a 20-7 win in their last trip to Griffiths Stadium back in 2011. Since 2007, the Dinos and Huskies have split their six games in Saskatoon right down the middle with each team taking three β including the 2009 Hardy Cup.
Hereβs a look at the two teams:
No. 3 Calgary Dinos (5-0)
Last week: defeated Alberta 76-21
Next week: BYE
The Dinos exploded for 848 yards of total offence in last weekβs 76-21 shellacking of the Alberta Golden Bears at Foote Field in Edmonton, stretching their win streak to five straight games and setting up a chance to clinch first place.
Mercer Timmis has made his case for conference MVP honours over the last two games, combining to score eight touchdowns in wins over Manitoba and Alberta. The sophomore tailback has 13 rushing majors on the year, leading the nation by eight β no other back has more than five β and his 14 total touchdowns puts him just three shy of Don Blairβs school record of 14 set in 1995, when Blair won the Hec Crighton and the Dinos won the Vanier Cup. He played the first half and one series of the third quarter against the Bears, totaling 214 yards on 16 carries to move into second spot on the conference rushing leaderboard with 709 yards in five games. For his efforts, he was named the conferenceβs offensive player of the week.
Andrew Buckley, meanwhile, is 4-0 as a starting quarterback and holds the best efficiency rating of any starter in the conference. He has completed 66.4 per cent of his passes for 1,432 yards on the season. The Calgary receivers got into the action and spread the ball out effectively last Saturday night, with four different receivers finding the end zone β including the first career touchdowns for fullback Anthony Anderson and wideout Kyle Brick. Rookie Rashaun Simonise didnβt score a touchdown but still had a career night with 10 catches for 162 yards, while Chris Dobko continues to pad his lead as the Dinosβ all-time leading receiver, adding six catches last week to bring his career total to 152.
Johnny Mark was the conferenceβs special teams MVP last weekend, averaging 47.1 yards per punt while connecting on a 46-yard field goal, the longest of his career. Mark remains the only perfect placekicker in the nation, going 9-for-9 in field goals and 19-for-19 in point-after attempts. His 10 converts last week set a new school single-game record, while his 101 career converts have him just four shy of Aaron Ifieldβs school record.
The Dinos enjoy the Thanksgiving bye next week before wrapping up the regular season with a pair of Friday night home dates, Oct. 18 against Regina and Oct. 25 against UBC.
No. 6 Saskatchewan Huskies (4-1)
Last week: defeated UBC 17-12
Next week: BYE
Struggling to find offence in their last two road games, the Huskies will look to the comforts of home field advantage to get a win over the visiting Calgary Dinos.
In the last two road games, the Huskies tallied 41 points with just 14 coming from the offence. In the two home games, Saskatchewan has scored 79 points with 56 coming from the offence.
Still riddled with injuries on the offensive line and in the secondary, the Huskies will look to veterans to guide the young replacements. In the last three matchups, the defence has kept Saskatchewan in the game recording two touchdowns from fumble recoveries and six sacks.
Battling the rain, Saskatchewan scored 16 points in the second half to win 17-12 over the UBC Thunderbirds last weekend. Quarterback Drew Burko completed 19-of-31 pass attempts for 231 yards, while running backs Dexter Janke and Shane Buchanan combined for 138 yards and one touchdown.
Experience on the defence stepped up once again for the Huskies in the game. Mark Ingram, Seamus Neary and Ronald Mwamba all had 4.5 tackles. Neary also added a fumble recovery for a touchdown. Saskatchewanβs defence continues to lead the Canada West with 18 sacks.
Following next weekβs bye, Saskatchewan hosts Manitoba before closing the regular season with a trip south to face provincial rival Regina.
Source: Β Ben Matchett, Calgary Dinos Sports Information
Game Date:Β Friday, October 4, 2013, 7pm
Game Location:Β Griffiths Stadium in PotashCorp Park
Live Radio Broadcast:Β CK 750,www.ck750.com
Live Television Broadcast:Β Shaw Cable
Live Webcast:Β canadawest.tv
Live Stats:Β canadawest.tv
Game Notes
THE GAME
Looking to secure postseason destinies, bitter rivals the Universities of Saskatchewan and Calgary will battle in their second meeting of the season Friday in Saskatoonβs Griffiths Stadium in PotashCorp Park.
BROADCAST INFO
Kickoff is 7 p.m. local time on Friday. It can be viewed live on Shaw Cable. The game is also available live on CK750 or www.ck750.com. It can also be viewed on canadawest.tv
WATCH FIRST & GOAL WITH DREW BURKO β EPISODE 10
HE HEADLINES
- Calgary, who has already locked up a playoff spot at 5-0, can secure a home postseason date with a win over Saskatchewan. The Huskies, at 4-1, could secure a playoff spot with a win over Calgary. Saskatchewan needs a combination of three wins, or two wins combined with a Manitoba Bisons loss to secure a home date.
- Saskatchewan (No. 6) is one of three Canada West teams to hold a spot in the CIS Top 10. Calgary (No. 3) and Manitoba (No. 10) join the Huskies in the national rankings.
- Since 2004, Calgary has only won twice in the six meetings in Griffiths Stadium β 20-19 in 2007 and 20-8 in 2011.
- Calgary won the first meeting between the teams 36-24 at McMahon Stadium on September 14.
- Dinosβ running back Mercer Timmis has a league-leading 14 touchdowns on the season and has rushed for over 100 yards in every game this season. He is the reigning Canada West Football Offensive Player of the Week for his 214 yards and four touchdowns Calgaryβs 76-21 win over Alberta.
- Huskie receiver Mitch Stevens continues to climb the all-time Saskatchewan touchdown reception list sitting alone in fifth with 13-career touchdown catches. Stevens is chasing Larry Giles record of 17 set in 1975.
- Fridayβs game is the annual Blackout. Stadium lights will be turned off and fans given glow sticks to help with the Huskies entrance. Fans will also be treated to a fireworks show at halftime.
DINOS/HUSKIES SERIES
Since 2010, the Huskies are 11-10 against the Dinos in conference action, including a 36-24 loss in Calgary on September 14. The Huskies last defeated Calgary on October 15, 2010 in a 36-17 victory in Saskatoon.
NO. 6 UNIVERSITY OF SASKATCHEWAN HUSKIES (4-1)
Next Week: BYE
Struggling to find offence in their last two road games, the Huskies will look to the comforts of home field advantage to get a win over the visiting Calgary Dinos.
In the last two road games, the Huskies tallied 41 points with just 14 coming from the offence. In the two home games, Saskatchewan has scored 79 points with 56 coming from the offence.
Still riddled with injuries on the offensive line and in the secondary, the Huskies will look to veterans to guide the young replacements. In the last three matchups, the defence has kept Saskatchewan in the game recording two touchdowns from fumble recoveries and six sacks.
Battling the rain, Saskatchewan scored 16 points in the second half to win 17-12 over the UBC Thunderbirds last weekend. Quarterback Drew Burko completed 19-of-31 pass attempts for 231 yards, while running backs Dexter Janke and Shane Buchanan combined for 138 yards and one touchdown.
Experience on the defence stepped up once again for the Huskies in the game. Mark Ingram, Seamus Neary and Ronald Mwamba all had 4.5 tackles. Neary also added a fumble recovery for a touchdown. Saskatchewanβs defence continues to lead the Canada West with 18 sacks.
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No. 3 Calgary Dinos (5-0)
Next Week: BYE
Calgary continues to dominate the Canada West leading in total offence (2879 yards) and scoring offence (235 points).
Andrew Buckley has stepped in completing 89-of134 passes for nine touchdowns and 1432 yards in his four starts in the CIS. Heβs helped by leading scorer Mercer Timmis. Timmis has a league-leading 14 touchdowns on the season and has rushed for over 100 yards in every game this season. He is the reigning Canada West Football Offensive Player of the Week for his 214 yards and four touchdowns Calgaryβs 76-21 win over Alberta.
In contrast, Saskatchewanβs top defence (allowing opponents to average just 6.6 yards per play) will hope to stop the potent Calgary offence.
Photo credit: Β Josh Schaefer
Source: Β Saskatchewan Huskies Sports Information
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