October 23, 2011
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Nill grabs 100th win as Dinos clinch first place (stats)


CALGARY – The No. 2 University of Calgary Dinos ensured a first place finish in Canada West for the first time since 1995, wrapping up home field advantage throughout the playoffs with a 41-24 victory over the Manitoba Bisons Saturday afternoon at McMahon Stadium.

The win improves Calgary’s record to 7-0, leaving the Dinos as the only remaining undefeated team in CIS after No. 1 Western fell 37-0 to the Queen’s Gaels, dropping to 7-1. Manitoba, meanwhile, falls to 3-4 and will likely need a victory in their final game of the regular season to qualify for the playoffs. The Bisons close the season at home against Regina.

A five-minute stretch in the opening quarter allowed the Dinos to jump out to a quick 21-0 lead after a rash of turnovers by the Bisons gave Calgary outstanding field position. The Dinos scored touchdowns on their first three drives of the game before an improved Manitoba squad got things sorted out and stemmed the tide. In fact, the Bisons outscored Calgary 24-20 in the final three quarters of the contest.

“We came out and played well, but in the second quarter we sort of fell asleep and let them back in the game,” said Dinos head coach Blake Nill following the 100th victory of his CIS coaching career. “That’s an indication of some immaturity that we still have, and something we can still improve on. In many ways we were lucky to get out with the win, and now we need to continue to just learn and grow. The score was not indicative of how this game went – we were battling the entire time.”

An early special teams play set up Calgary’s first touchdown just 3:53 into the contest. Linebacker Zach McNeill blocked a Brendan Bowman punt, and Anthony Woodson recovered the loose ball on the Manitoba 16-yard line. Two Steven Lumbala runs later, Calgary had a 7-0 lead.

On Manitoba’s next offensive play, Anthony Coombs busted outside for a 15-yard gain but was stripped of the ball by Cory Roboch, and Thomas Spoletini recovered for the Dinos – again inside Bison territory. Matt Walter scored his 35th career touchdown six plays later to give the home side a 14-0 lead at 6:39. And just over two minutes later, Eric Dzwilewski found Chris Dobko in the end zone from 17 yards out to make it 21-0.

But the Bisons stormed back in the second quarter, led by fourth-year quarterback Khaleal Williams. After the teams exchanged several two-and-outs to open the quarter, Williams led the Bisons on a seven-play, 84-yard drive highlighted by a 51-yard completion to Tyson Takasaki. A nine-yard touchdown catch by Jared Ralko put the Bisons on the board.

Just over two minutes later, Williams punched it in himself from one yard out to bring Manitoba within seven at the half, trailing 21-14.

The Dinos responded quickly in the third quarter. Starting on their own 10-yard line following the kickoff, Dzwilewski and the Dinos trekked 100 yards to the end zone on just six plays. It was the sophomore pivot himself who scored on a six-yard run, but the drive was kept alive by a 67-yard Matt Walter rush that took Calgary from the shadows of its own goal posts into the red zone.

Each team would score one more touchdown before the final gun sounded. Coombs ran for a 63-yard major late in the third quarter, while Jake Harty made a nice 23-yard grab in the end zone for the Dinos to cap off the scoring. Nick Boyd added a 12-yard field goal for Manitoba, while Johnny Mark connected from 19 and 33 yards for Calgary.

It was another impressive rushing performance for the Dinos, who piled up 337 yards along the ground. Walter led the way with 141, putting him just 14 yards away from the 4,000 mark on his career with one game to play. Woodson and Lumbala finished with identical statlines – 12 carries for 88 yards. Dobko was the leading receiver for Calgary with 75 yards on five catches and the touchdown, while Dzwilewski completed 16 of 24 passes for 242 yards and a pair of majors.

Coombs’ 63-yard score made up the lion’s share of his 81 rushing yards to lead the way for Manitoba, while Williams called his own number eight times and scampered for 56 yards. He also completed 23 of 29 passes for 332 yards, but he did feel pressure from a Calgary defensive front that recorded three sacks and six tackles for loss on the day. McNeill, Mike Edem, and Martin Kalonji each recorded a sack for the Dinos.

Sam Hurl was Calgary’s leading tackler with 6.5, while Marlon Azurdia picked up 7.5 tackles, a sack, 1.5 tackles for loss, and a pass break-up to lead Manitoba defensively.

With first place assured, Nill’s Dinos will continue to host playoff games as long as they keep winning, all the way through the national semi-final Mitchell Bowl, which sees the Quebec champion head west this season. The first step, a Canada West semi-final, is slated for Friday, Nov. at 7 p.m. at McMahon Stadium, where the Dinos have won 23 of their last 24 home games.

“The travel day is always tough when you’re on the road, and our kids are still students – so staying home and focused through the playoffs is going to be really beneficial for us,” said Nill. “We didn’t want to go into a do-or-die type game next week, and you’ve got to give our guys credit for taking care of it today.”

While Manitoba heads home to close out the season next week, the Dinos head to Vancouver for a date with the UBC Thunderbirds Saturday, Oct. 29 at 3 p.m. MT live on Shaw TV.

EXTRA POINTS: The Dinos have never finished a season 8-0 since the program started in 1964 … the team has finished 7-1 twice – 1988 and 2009 … redshirt freshman kicker Johnny Mark kicked his 16th and 17th field goals of the season Saturday, putting him just one back of Aaron Ifield’s single-season school record of 18 – which he set last season … Blake Nill’s 100th career victory (80 regular season, 20 playoffs) came in his 140th game, giving him a lifetime winning percentage of .714 … Matt Walter was recognized in a pre-game ceremony for becoming the University of Calgary’s all-time leading rusher, as he was presented the game ball by Elio Geremia, the previous record holder, who won two Vanier Cups with the Dinos during his career from 1983-87 … Walter along with Kyle Carbert, Chudi Nzekwu, Michael Lau, and Anthony Woodson were also honoured before the final regular season home game of their CIS careers …

Scoring Summary (Final)
2011 UC Dinos Football
Manitoba vs #2 Calgary (Oct 22, 2011 at Calgary, AB) Manitoba (3-4,3-4) vs. Calgary (7-0,7-0)
Date: Oct 22, 2011 • Site: Calgary, AB • Stadium: McMahon Stadium • Attendance: 1027

Score by Quarters 1 2 3 4 Score
Manitoba 0 14 7 3 24
Calgary 21 0 10 10 41
SCORING SUMMARY MAN -CGY
1st 03:53 CGY Steven Lumbala 2 yd run (Johnny Mark kick)
2 plays, 16 yards, TOP 0:22 0 – 7
06:39 CGY Matt Walter 5 yd run (Johnny Mark kick)
6 plays, 41 yards, TOP 2:13 0 – 14
08:44 CGY Chris Dobko 17 yd pass from Eric Dzwilewski (Johnny Mark kick)
3 plays, 41 yards, TOP 1:12 0 – 21
2nd 11:42 MAN Jared Ralko 9 yd pass from K. Williams (Nick Boyd kick)
7 plays, 84 yards, TOP 2:40 7 – 21
13:55 MAN K. Williams 1 yd run (Nick Boyd kick)
8 plays, 63 yards, TOP 1:28 14 – 21
3rd 02:35 CGY Eric Dzwilewski 6 yd run (Johnny Mark kick)
6 plays, 100 yards, TOP 2:23 14 – 28
11:03 CGY Johnny Mark 19 yd field goal
10 plays, 0 yards, TOP 3:59 14 – 31
12:26 MAN Anthony Coombs 63 yd run (Nick Boyd kick)
10 plays, 0 yards, TOP 3:59 21 – 31
4th 00:18 CGY Johnny Mark 33 yd field goal
25 plays, 0 yards, TOP 11:06 21 – 34
04:57 MAN Nick Boyd 12 yd field goal
25 plays, 0 yards, TOP 11:06 24 – 34
08:48 CGY Jake Harty 23 yd pass from Eric Dzwilewski (Johnny Mark kick)
25 plays, 0 yards, TOP 11:06 24 – 41
Kickoff time: 1:00 pm • End of Game: 3:56 pm • Total elapsed time: 2:56
Referee: Shawn Kerr • Umpire: Cam Dickson • Linesman: Jerry Guido • Line judge: Cam Schwieder • Back judge: Jim Woods • Field judge: Blair Brown • Side judge: Glen Haner • Scorer: Daryl Slade •
Temperature: 9 C • Wind: • Weather: sunny and cool

Team Statistics

Team Statistics (Final)
2011 UC Dinos Football
Manitoba vs #2 Calgary (Oct 22, 2011 at Calgary, AB)

Team Totals MAN CGY
FIRST DOWNS 24 32
Rushing 7 15
Passing 14 13
Penalty 3 4
NET YARDS RUSHING 144 337
Rushing Attempts 20 42
Average Per Rush 7.2 8.0
Rushing Touchdowns 2 3
Yards Gained Rushing 150 346
Yards Lost Rushing 6 9
NET YARDS PASSING 332 242
Completions-Attempts-Int 23-39-0 16-24-0
Average Per Attempt 8.5 10.1
Average Per Completion 14.4 15.1
Passing Touchdowns 1 2
TEAM LOSSES -42 -25
TOTAL OFFENSE YARDS 434 554
Total offense plays 62 67
Average Gain Per Play 7.0 8.3
Fumbles: Number-Lost 3-3 1-0
Penalties: Number-Yards 13-121 10-96
PUNTS-YARDS 6-246 6-217
Average Yards Per Punt 41.0 36.2
Net Yards Per Punt 33.3 34.8
Inside 20 1 2
50+ Yards 1 0
Touchbacks 0 0
Fair catch 0 0
KICKOFFS-YARDS 4-266 [FO

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