Historic opportunity for Dinos Football (video)

CALGARY – In 46 previous seasons of Canada West football, the University of Calgary Dinos have captured 12 Canada West titles, four Vanier Cup championships, a host of individual awards, and the respect as one of the elite programs in Canadian Interuniversity Sport.

But they’ve never had a perfect season.

Wearing a 7-0 record and the No. 1 ranking in the nation, the 2011 edition of the Dinos heads to Vancouver this weekend to wrap up the regular season against the 5-2 UBC Thunderbirds with the chance to go 8-0 for the first time in program history. Three times, the Dinos have finished a season 7-1 (1984, 1988, and, most recently, 2009), but that perfect record has always eluded them.

Kickoff goes at 3 p.m. MT (2 p.m. local), live on Shaw TV (Channel 10 Calgary) and qr77.com from Thunderbird Stadium.

From a standings perspective, the game means nothing for Calgary. The lone remaining undefeated team in Canada, the Dinos have already clinched first place in Canada West for the first time since 1995 and will enjoy home field advantage all the way to the Vanier Cup as Canada West hosts the Mitchell Bowl again in 2011. For the Thunderbirds, however, the game could decide whether they host a first-round playoff match-up or whether they hit the road.

The scenarios are many and varied, but a few are more likely than the others. For certain, a UBC win over Calgary would clinch second place and a home playoff game for the Thunderbirds, where their likely opponent would be the Saskatchewan Huskies. A Calgary win, coupled with a Saskatchewan victory over winless Alberta, would send the T-Birds to Saskatoon to face the Huskies in next week’s semi-final round. The Dinos, meanwhile, are most likely to face the winner of this week’s Manitoba-Regina game in the first round – but an Alberta win over Saskatchewan would throw a wrench into all of it.

The Thunderbirds gave the Dinos one of their biggest scares of the season, forcing Calgary to mount an 85-yard drive in the waning moments of the game to win 30-25 Sept. 9 on a Steven Lumbala touchdown. Lumbala had 80 of the 85 yards on that game-winning drive as the Dinos ran the ball on every play – a game plan that has worked to perfection through seven games so far this season.

Here’s a look at the two teams:

No. 1 Calgary Dinos (7-0)

Last week: defeated Manitoba 41-24

Next week: host Canada West semi-final (opponent TBD)

Blake Nill celebrated his 100th CIS victory last week with a 41-24 defeat of Manitoba at McMahon Stadium to clinch first place. As has been the story throughout the season, it happened with the run game – this time sparked by Matt Walter’s 141-yard performance. It moved Walter to within just 14 yards of 4,000 on his career – a milestone just eight other CIS players have reached.

Calgary’s offence is averaging nearly 510 total yards, 39 points, and 276 rushing yards per game on the season – easily the best totals in the conference in all three areas. But the Dinos’ defence has also stepped up – Calgary leads Canada West in points allowed (17.1/game), total yards allowed (308.7), rushing yards (118.6), passing yards (190.1), and sacks (19). The Dinos boast a +14 turnover margin – six better than second-place UBC – and have held opponents to just 16.7 first downs per game. They’ll have their hands full with UBC quarterback Billy Greene, however, who’s widely considered the likely Canada West nominee for the Hec Crighton trophy.

Offensively, Lumbala’s 817 yards has him just one off Regina’s Adrian Charles for the conference’s rushing lead, and he’ll look to leapfrog Charles against the UBC run defence, which has allowed almost 240 yards per game. That total against the Dinos back in Week 2 was 351 yards, 204 of which came courtesy Lumbala.

Kicker Johnny Mark has been an impressive success story for the Dinos in 2011 as well. The 19-year-old redshirt freshman has missed just one of his 18 field goal tries on the year for an impressive 94.4 per cent success rate, and he enters the last week of the season just one field goal away from tying Aaron Ifield’s single-season school record of 18 – which he set last season.

Calgary will host one of the two Canada West semi-final games on Friday, Nov. 4 at 7 p.m. at McMahon Stadium.

No. 7 UBC Thunderbirds (5-2)

Last week: defeated Alberta 39-22

Next week: Canada West semi-final (opponent and location TBD)

Second-year head coach Shawn Olson and fourth-year pivot Billy Greene have led a renaissance of the UBC program that went from finishing out of the playoffs a year ago to a 5-2 record and a very possible home playoff date this year, and they gave the Dinos a major run for their money back in Week 2.

That, along with a 36-33 loss at Saskatchewan, are the only blemishes on an otherwise impressive season for the Thunderbirds, who sit right behind the Dinos in most offensive categories. The one place they do hold top spot is in passing – Greene is the conference’s number one passer with more than 300 yards per game and just four interceptions in 244 attempts. He’s also in the top 10 in rushing with 60 yards per game on 53 carries – the most of any quarterback in the conference.

Jordan Grieve has been Greene’s top target and is the Thunderbirds’ big-play threat, averaging nearly 20 yards per catch for 672 yards on just 34 receptions. UBC has four receivers in the top 10 in receiving yards per game, while no other team has more than two.

While the offence has marched downfield almost at will for much of the season, so have the offences of the opposition. The Thunderbirds rank dead last in yards allowed (513.7/game) and passing yards allowed (274.7/game), and their run defence will have its hands full against the Dinos’ three-headed running monster of Lumbala, Walter, and Anthony Woodson, who have combined for more than 1,700 yards on the season.

The T-Birds do have a solid pass rush, however, with Connor Flynn and Serge Kaminsky leading the conference with six and five sacks on the season, respectively. Fifth-year defensive back Chris Mark was last week’s conference player of the week on defence, recording eight tackles and a 55-yard interception return touchdown as the Thunderbirds handed the Alberta Golden Bears their seventh straight loss 39-22 at Foote Field in Edmonton.

Ben Matchett