Huskies next hurdle for 3-0 Dinos

CALGARY – In the midst of the success the University of Calgary Dinos football team has enjoyed over the past three seasons, the Saskatchewan Huskies have continued to be a thorn in their sides.

Both of Blake Nill’s victories over Saskatchewan have come at Griffiths Stadium in Saskatoon, and both in extremely exciting fashion. The 2007 contest that featured an Aaron Ifield 51-yard game-winning field goal is widely credited as the game that showed the Dinos were truly on the rise in Canada West, while the 2009 Hardy Cup was an instant classic that vaulted the Dinos to a Vanier Cup appearance.

But in the five-plus seasons Nill has been head coach of the Dinos, his team has yet to beat the Huskies on home turf. Indeed, Calgary’s record in the last 10 conference games against Saskatchewan is just 1-9, and the last McMahon Stadium win for the Dinos over the Huskies happened all the way back on Oct. 20, 2000. They’ll get their latest chance Friday night when the Huskies pay a visit to McMahon Stadium (7 p.m.; QR77 radio, CanadaWest.tv webcast).

The Dinos, of course, won’t soon forget their last meeting with the Huskies on home turf. Ranked No. 1 in the nation entering the 2010 season, Calgary fell 34-13 in the pouring rain on a dismal Saturday night at McMahon last September. Saskatchewan went on to sweep the 2010 season series with a 37-16 win at home weeks later.

Their head-to-head record with their biggest rival aside, the No. 3-ranked Dinos have plenty on the line as Friday night’s top-10 tilt approaches. A win would maintain their status as the only undefeated team in Canada West and give them a two-game cushion over Saskatchewan with the Alberta Golden Bears next on the schedule. A win would all but clinch a fifth-straight playoff appearance, a first in the storied history of the University of Calgary program.

It would also keep the Dinos above the fray developing below them – a three-way tie for second place at 2-1 heading into this weekend between the Huskies, Manitoba, and UBC.

The Dinos and Huskies will face off once more this season, Oct. 14 at Griffiths Stadium in Saskatoon.

Here’s a look at the two teams:

No. 3 Calgary Dinos (3-0)

Last week: defeated Regina (51-1)

Next week: host Alberta

After starting the season with a pair of last-minute victories over Manitoba and UBC, the Dinos finally gave fans a chance to exhale early in a dominant 51-1 win over the ailing Regina Rams last week at Mosaic Stadium.

Chris Dobko caught three touchdown passes to earn conference offensive player-of-the-week honours.J Jake Harty, Steven Lumbala, and Denzel Morrison each added a major as the Dinos broke open a tight game late in the second quarter and ran away with it in the second half to hand the Rams their worst loss since joining CIS in 1999.

Eric Dzwilewski had an efficient night, completing 10 passes for just 90 yards but adding three TDs as the Dinos enjoyed fantastic field position, with an average drive start on the Calgary 50-yard line. Calgary racked up 336 yards of total offence, led by 217 along the ground – 110 of those from Steven Lumbala, who surpassed the 1,000-yard threshold for his career.

The Calgary run game again leads the conference with a 270 yards per game average, but they run into the conference’s top run defence this week in the Huskies, who have averaged less than 75 rushing yards against so far this season.

Defensively, the Dinos nearly pitched a shutout and gave up just 177 total yards and eight first downs to the Rams. The Calgary defence picked up its first two interceptions of the season and added three fumble recoveries, including a pair of blocked punts by Drew Redekopp. Through three games, Calgary holds a commanding lead in the giveaway-takeaway category in Canada West, holding a +9 rating.

Friday night against the Huskies Calgary will again try to extend its dominance on home turf as the Dinos look to extend their home winning streak to eight overall games. They have lost just one of their last 21 games at home dating back to 2007 – and that game was the season-opener last year against these very same Saskatchewan Huskies.

The Dinos have one more game before heading into the bye week, hosting the Alberta Golden Bears for a rare Sunday contest on Oct. 2. Kickoff goes at 1 p.m. at McMahon, live on Shaw TV and QR77.

No. 7 Saskatchewan Huskies (2-1)

Last week: lost @ Manitoba (26-16)

Next week: host UBC

The new-look Saskatchewan Huskies started the season with impressive 38-7 and 33-10 home wins over Alberta and Regina, respectively, but fell to No. 7 in the national top 10 this week after a 26-16 setback to the upstart Manitoba Bisons last Saturday in Winnipeg.

Manitoba’s Grayson Wells was the hero, jumping on a loose ball in the end zone after a Bisons punt on the first play of the fourth quarter to score what turned out to be the game-winning touchdown.

The loss meant that Huskies head coach Brian Towriss will have to wait at least one more week to become the all-time winningest coach in CIS history, moving ahead of Western Ontario coaching legend Larry Haylor’s mark of 169. In his 28th season as head coach of the Huskies, Towriss will shoot for No. 170 Friday night – a mark that the Dinos would clearly like to see wait at least one more week.

Jahlani Gilbert-Knorren has emerged as the starting quarterback for the Huskies, with Trent Peterson also getting more than a regular backup’s share of reps. The elusive Gilbert-Knorren is averaging 191 passing yards per game along with 50 along the ground and can cause problems for opposing defences with his athleticism and his feet. Saskatchewan’s rush offence as a whole, however, is near the bottom of the conference, averaging just over 135 yards per game.

The Huskies close out the pre-bye portion of their schedule next week with a home game against UBC that will have significant playoff implications, then prepare for the rematch with the Dinos on Oct. 14.

-UC-
Ben Matchett