Can West RECAP: UBC wins 99 point shoot out [stats]

WINNIPEG – In a game with 99 combined points scored, the turning point was an on-side kick in the battle of two Canada West football team entering the game with identical 1-1 conference records.

#10 UBC Thunderbirds prevailed in a thrilling and highly entertaining game as the Thunderbirds won 51-48 over the #7 Manitoba Bisons on Saturday, September 19 in front of 2,406 fans at the Investors Group Field.

At the start of the third quarter, only ahead 27-20, UBC executed a perfectly planned on-side kick and then only needed three plays to quickly score (21 yard TD run by Brandon Deschamps) and extend their lead to 14 points and re-capture the momentum. From there, the T-Birds scored again on their next drive for a three touchdown lead and held on as the Bisons mounted a spirited comeback but fell three points short.

“I give credit to their kicker (third year Quinn van Gylswyk) as he made a great play on the on-side, ” stated Bison head coach Brian Dobie after the home loss. “UBC played hard tonight…we’re not there yet but I take away that it’s a long way to go in the season and we can’t lose sight on fighting for everything little thing.”

This was not a defensive struggle as there was almost 1,000 yards combined were generated by both CIS Top 10 teams.

There were big offensive plays on both sides as Manitoba started the game with a 45 yard pass from QB Theo Deezar to rookie slotback Jesse Walker with only three minutes gone. From there, UBC countered with QB Michael O’Connor connecting on a 42 yard pass to receiver Alex Morrison and 31 yard pass to Will Watson while sandwiched in between for the visitors was a 103 yard kickoff return by Trivel Pinto – all in the first half. Deezar found rookie Jamel Lyles on a 21 yard pass just before the end of the second and that’s when the special teams literally kicked in for UBC to take control of the game.

After Marcus Davis caught a 16 yard TD pass from O’Connor to move the lead to 41-20 with 8:03 left in the third, Manitoba responded with Deezar’s 35 yard TD pass to running back Alex Christie to end the quarter. Deezar added a five yard run for a touchdown to start the fourth before another quick TD by O’Connor to Watson from 15 yards out and it only took three plays. The Bisons then drove 65 yards and scored on a one yard plunge by fullback Andrew Barry but the point after was blocked to remain behind 48-40 with only six minutes left.

On the ensuing drive, the Thunderbirds notched a crucial three points after a time consuming drive to push the advantage to a two possession contest and even though Manitoba rallied with a late TD pass from Deezar to Lyles, UBC recovered the home side on-side kick attempt and ran out the clock for the road victory.

This battle had a ton of offence stats as UBC finished with 473 total yards while Manitoba had 616.

Individually, UBC was paced by O’Connor who went 26-38 for 398 passing yards with four TDs. Pinto had 210 all-purpose yards with 107 receiving yards from eight catches and the 103 kickoff TD while Morrison added 118 receiving yards, 1 TD on five grabs, Watson with 83 yards from four receptions and 2 TDs plus Davis had 44 yards on three catches and 1 TD. Deschamps churned up 83 rushing yards and 1 TD. Kicker van Gylswyk was strong as place kicker and punter. He angled balls all night on top of the successful on-side plus went 3-3 on field goals (longest 37) and had a 41.6 punting average. On defence, linebacker Terrell Davis finished with a game-high 10.0 total tackles (nine solo) with one sack.

Deezar had a career day at this level and record setting game for the Bisons. The second year pivot went 28-39 for 519 passing yards and 4 TDs while also running for 1 TD. The 519 passing yards sets a new Bison record and is the seventh most in conference history.

In addition for the Bisons, Alex Vitt had a game-high 161 receiving yards on five catches while Walker added 109 yards on six receptions and 1 TD. Lyles had 200 all-purpose yards with 88 receiving yards on five catches while 60 rushing yards and 52 return yards and two receiving TDs. There was nine different Bison receivers with at least one catch. Ryan Jones went 2-4 in FGs and averaged 36.7 in punting department. On defence, linebacker DJ Lalama had 7.5 total tackles and the team had three sacks.

In week four Canada West football action, UBC (2-1) faces Saskatchewan (1-2) on Friday, September 25 while Manitoba (1-2) will travel and play at Alberta (2-1) on Saturday, September 26.

Game Notes: Both teams will play again in the 2015 Canada West regular season when Manitoba plays at UBC on Saturday, October 31. Theo Deezar broke the existing Bison record for most passing yards in a game set by Jordan Yantz in 2013 (Sept. 20 at Calgary) and tied the Bison mark for most completions in a game (Shane Munson – 28 on Sept. 22, 2000 at Calgary).

Source: Manitoba Sports Info

VANCOUVER – That was the definition of a shootout.

The No. 10 UBC Thunderbirds (2-1-0) went into Investors Group Field and beat the No. 7 Manitoba Bisons (1-2-0) in thrilling fashion, earning a 51-48 win over their Canada West rivals. Quarterback Michael O’Connor (Orleans, Ont.) led the T-Birds’ offence to their highest scoring performance since October 19, 2013, a 60-0 win over the Alberta Golden Bears.

O’Connor was absolutely surgical against Manitoba, carving up the Bisons defense to the tune of 398 yards and four touchdowns through the air.

The UBC receiving corps terrorized the Manitoba secondary all night, with Alex Morrison (Sault Ste. Marie, Ont.) hauling in five balls for 118 yards and a touchdown, Trivel Pinto (Toronto) bringing down eight catches for 107 yards, and Will Watson (Surrey, B.C.) catching four passes for 83 yards and two scores. Offensive weapon Marcus Davis (Victoria, B.C.) also played a significant role in the passing game, catching five balls for 44 yards and a score.

Brandon Deschamps (Prince George, B.C.) was great on the ground for the T-Birds, racking up 84 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries, though he did lose a fumble in the first half.

Special teams play was dominated by the T-Birds, with a 103-yard kick return touchdown from Pinto, the second-longest in school history, and a couple of trick plays from head coach Blake Nill among the highlights.

Talking about the back-and-forth nature of the game, Nill was impressed with the amount of moxie and resiliency his squad showed.

“Full credit to those young men,” said Nill. “They did what it took to win, on the road, against a very good football team, and right now, I’m just very proud of these guys for doing what it took to earn a hard-fought win.”

However, the game didn’t start out the way the T-Birds were hoping for. On Manitoba’s first drive of the night, Bisons quarterback Theo Deezar launched a 45-yard bomb to wideout Jesse Walker, who ran in untouched to the end zone to make it 7-0.

Kicker Quinn Van Gylswyk (Victoria, B.C.) got the T-Birds on the board with four minutes left in the first quarter. After Marcus Davis‘ 27-yard punt return got UBC deep into Manitoba territory, the offence stalled out on the next two plays. Van Gylswyk then stepped in and drilled a 37-yard field goal, cutting the Bisons lead to 7-3.

O’Connor picked it up in a big way to start the second quarter. On UBC’s first drive of the frame, the Penn State transfer dialed up a 42-yard bomb to senior wide receiver Morrison, who did well to adjust to the ball and bring it in for the touchdown. With 13:43 left in the second quarter, the score gave the T-Birds their first lead of the contest.

The defence stepped up for UBC on the next Bisons drive. After defensive end Dante Vigini (Coquitlam, B.C.) blew up a rushing attempt by Manitoba star running back Jamel Lyles, free safety Taylor Loffler (Kelowna, B.C.) made a brilliant one-handed interception on Deezar’s next throw. Loffler, the reigning Canada West Defensive Player of the Week, picked up 22 yards on the return.

Faced with a third down for UBC on the ensuing drive, Nill called for a bit of trickery. Set up for a 38-yard field goal, holder Trevor Casey (Port Coquitlam, B.C.) instead flipped the ball to linebacker Terrell Davis (Victoria, B.C.) on the sweep to the right. The linebacker raced down to the Manitoba six-yard line before being shoved out of bounds.

With five and a half minutes left in the first half, Manitoba kicker Ryan Jones chipped away at UBC’s lead with a 31-yard field goal, making the game 13-10 for the T-Birds.

Pinto made sure to stem the Manitoba momentum on the ensuing kickoff. UBC’s 6-foot returner took a high kick from Jones at his own 7-yard line and absolutely took off, finding a seam through Manitoba’s coverage unit for a smooth 103-yard touchdown.

Another Jones field goal cut the lead to 20-13 with just under two minutes left in the half, and then O’Connor showed why he was such a lauded acquisition on the next drive.

After penalties got the T-Birds into a second and long situation, O’Connor found Morrison, who was left wide open following a Manitoba defensive breakdown, on a 44-yard bomb. Not giving the Bisons a chance to regroup, O’Connor went deep again on the next play, hitting Watson on a pinpoint-accurate 31-yard throw in the end zone.

Deezar led the Bisons back before the end of the half, leading a scoring drive that started on his own 23-yard line. After hitting a variety of receivers to march downfield, the series culminated in a shovel pass to Lyles, who took the ball 21 yards to the house.

The two teams went into the break with UBC up 27-20.

Nill pulled another trick out his hat to start the second half, as he called an onside kick that the T-Birds executed perfectly. Van Gylswyk placed a perfect ball to Watson on the kick, and UBC took possession at the Manitoba 51-yard line.

The UBC offence picked apart the Bisons defence on the ensuing drive, with O’Connor hitting Morrison and receiver Marshall Cook (Nanaimo, B.C.) before Deschamps broke a 21-yard run up the middle for the touchdown.

After the defence forced another two-and-out, O’Connor and his receiving corps went back to work.

With 10 minutes to go in the frame, O’Connor hit Davis on his first pass of the drive, and the running back fought his way to a first down. Next, it was Pinto on a 16-yard pass, and then Morrison on back-to-back tosses. O’Connor then found Davis twice, first on a 20-yard shovel pass, and then on a 16-yard pass where Davis found the soft spot in Manitoba’s secondary and walked in untouched for the score.

The Bisons offence did well not to let the game get out of hand, as Deezar and running back Alex Christie led another long drive after the Davis touchdown. Christie was the key for the Manitoba offence, as he took a short shovel pass from Deezar and raced 35 yards to the UBC end zone, making it 41-27 for the T-Birds.

With the two teams trading punts, the score remained that way for the rest of the third quarter.

After Deezar did well to pull the Bisons back to within seven at the opening of the fourth quarter, finishing a scoring drive with a 5-yard touchdown run of his own, O’Connor wasted no time in answering right back.

After Malcom Lee (Surrey, B.C.) returned Jones’ kickoff to the Manitoba 53-yard line, O’Connor hit Pinto on a 29-yard connection, and then found Watson in space. The receiver did the rest, beating Manitoba’s secondary to the pylon and restoring UBC’s two-touchdown lead with 12 minutes left in the contest.

Five minutes later, Deezar orchestrated another touchdown drive, hitting four different receivers and driving down to the UBC two-yard line, where fullback Andrew Barry punched it in.

On UBC’s next drive, O’Connor hit Watson and Pinto on a couple of big gains, putting the T-Birds in scoring territory. Van Gylswyk added to the T-Birds’ lead after the drive stalled, with his 27-yard field goal putting UBC up 51-40 with just 2:44 left in the game.

The Bisons would not go quietly, and, after Deezar’s arm got Manitoba to the UBC 31-yard line, Lyles took a short pass from his quarterback and bolted to the house, making a couple of defenders miss in the open field en route to making it 51-48 with 93 seconds remaining.

For the Bisons, who fell to 1-2 on the season, the story of the contest was Deezar, who finished with a Manitoba school-record 519 passing yards, four touchdowns, and the one interception. Lyles was a nightmare for the UBC defence in all facets of the game, picking up 148 all-purpose yards.

Even a good record out of his team’s initial three games, Nill expects that, with the way they’ve responded to his instruction thus far, the T-Birds haven’t come close to hitting full stride.

“We’re 2-1 in the regular season now, and the kids are constantly getting better,” said Nill. “We’re gaining experience quickly, and I’ve been tough on these guys, but they’ve responded the right way, and I couldn’t be more proud of them.”

The Thunderbirds will look to continue their momentum as they return home to take on the Saskatchewan Huskies at David Sidoo Field at Thunderbird Stadium on Friday, September 25, 2015. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. (PT)

Source: UBC Spots Info, By Aaron Martin

 

UBC vs. Manitoba at Winnipeg, MB 9/19/2015 at 6:07 PM
UBC 51	Manitoba 48