Sunday, Oct. 1
(photo credit: Mathieu Belanger)
McGill (0), Laval (34)
With files from: Laval Rouge et Or
Université Laval, October 1, 2017 – Laval offered a virtually perfect defensive performance Sunday at the TELUS-UL Stadium, winning a 34-0 victory over the McGill Redmen.
The Redmen, often deep in their own zone, have conceded no fewer than six safety touchdowns to the Rouge et Or, to the delight of the 11,056 fans who had traveled to PEPS on this beautiful afternoon in October.
The difference in the yards traveled did not lie: 445 for Laval, barely 84 for the Redmen. Laval managed nine sacks of the quarter, including 3,5 for Mathieu Betts. The defensive end thus approaches one sack of the career record (26.5) held by Vincent Desloges.
“We did some very nice things defensively. We put a lot of pressure on the quarterback, an aspect that we wanted to unlock, but for that, it takes a cohesion with the tertiary. It was a good blanket, “commented head coach Glen Constantin.
Regarding his offensive unit, Constantin observed a progression. “We’ve improved, but there’s still a lot to work on. We are satisfied with the week of practice we have known. The matches are often a reflection of the training weeks, and today we have demonstrated a good level of focus and attention to detail, “Constantin said.
Hugo Richard crossed the 300-yard mark for the fourth time in five games. The Laval pivot also ran six times for 31 yards.
The Rouge et Or’s defense left nothing to the visitors at the start of the game. As a result, the Redmen had to concede a safety touchdown to each of their first four possessions, thus giving eight points to the premises.
The Laval attack also managed to stand out, notably on a 75-yard attacking series that ended with a touchdown by Étienne Moisan on a 30-yard pass from Hugo Richard in the middle of the first encounter.
After a simple addition to the table after a placement of 37 yards narrowly missed right by David Côté, Laval added another major, this time thanks to a catch by diving Alexandre Savard. The score was then 23-0. Dominic Lévesque completed the mark after a half on a long 59-yard clearance good for a single. After 30 minutes, it was 24-0 for the Rouge et Or.
A sack of Mathieu Betts’ quarterback in McGill’s goal zone towards the end of the third engagement gave Laval another two points. The Redmen conceded a sixth touchdown at the start of the fourth to make 28-0.
David Côté added two 32-yard and 15-yard end-of-game placements to bring the score to 34-0, the score on which the game ended.
Laval will face the Vert & Or de Sherbrooke (1-4) in the Estrie next Saturday. The men of Glen Constantin will then enjoy a week off, before receiving the visit of the Carabins of Montreal (4-0) on Saturday October 21st at 2 pm at the TELUS-UL Stadium. Tickets for this event are available online or at the Rouge et Or Box Office at 418 656-FOOT (3668).
Saturday, Sept. 30
MTA (14), Acadia (33)
Source: Acadia Axemen
WOLFVILLE, N.S. – Jarett Saumure‘s four field goals helped the Acadia Axemen football team improve to 3-2 with a convincing 33-14 win over the visiting Mount Allison Mounties. The win evens the score against the Mounties after a season opener in Sackville, N.B. resulted in a lopsided loss to Mount Allison.
The Mounties jumped on the scoreboard early with two touchdowns in the opening quarter. Jared Rawlings pulled in a 10 yard pass from Troy Downton to give the Mounties the first of two first quarter majors.
Saumure answered the Mountie touchdown with a 21 yard field goal, but Mount Allison responded four minutes later with their second and last points scored in the game. Malcom Miller capped off a nine play, 75 yard drive with a 15 yard direct-snap rush for the Mounties second and last touchdown.
Fifty-three seconds into the second quarter, Subway Player of the Game, Eugene McMinns closed the game to 14-10 on a 34 yard touchdown pass from senior pivot Cody Cluett.
Just under four minutes later, third year quarterback Hunter Guenard connected with Cordell Hastings for Acadia’s second touchdown in the second frame. Hasting’s 39 yard reception gave the Axemen their first lead of the afternoon.
Deep in their own end and a third down situation, Mount Allison elected to try for the first down on a fake punt that backfired, giving Acadia possession of the ball on the Mounties’ 8 yard line.
Acadia was quick to capitalize on the blunder, with Dale Wright back-tracking on a hand-off, scoring Acadia’s third and last touchdown of the afternoon. Acadia headed into halftime with a 24-14 lead.
Saumure kicked three additional field goals in the second half – two in the third quarter and one in the final frame, to give the Axemen a 33-14 lead and eventual win.
The Axemen posted 243 net yards on the ground that included 129 yards on 17 carries by Dale Wright. Cameron Davidson, who returned from injury, added 55 yards on 10 carries.
Cluett was 11 completions on 22 attempts that amounted to 157 yards of offence in the air. McMinns led the receivers with 67 on three receptions, while teammates Cordell Hastings and Brad Vince each had three catches for 57 and 33 yards respectively.
On the losing side, the Mounties 213 total yards on offence compared to Acadia’s 443. Kiel Ambursley was the bright spot for Mount Allison with 65 yards in rushing on 16 carries. Josh Hicks let the receiving core with 53 yards on 5 receptions and Jared Rawlings, who posted one of the Mounties’ touchdowns had 45 yards in receiving on four catches.
McMinns noted that the team is not caught up with the wins or losses.
“The culture on the team is very detailed and we are learning new stuff. Our mindset is ‘the game is over and on to the next one’. We try not to get caught up in the hype,” noted McMinns.
Bailey Feltmate led the Axemen on defense with 5 solo tackles and 4 assisted. Feltmate sits second in the AUS season tackles category with 37 in total, while teammate Jadin White-Frayne added a fifth interception for the season and leads the AUS. Garvis Cius trails White-Frayne with three after today’s interception.
Coming off a bye week, the Axemen shook some of the rust off from the 15 day layover and will take to the road for the longest trip of the season to Lennoxville, Que. to take on the Bishop’s Gaiters at 3:00 p.m. (AT). The Mounties host StFX next Saturday at 2:00 p.m.
(Photo courtesy Bryan Kennedy)
SMU (22), StFX (21)
Source: StFX X-men
Antigonish, NS – The Saint Mary’s Huskies put a damper on StFX Homecoming weekend with a come-from-behind 22-21 victory over the X-Men Saturday afternoon at Oland Stadium.
Huskies quarterback Kaleb Scott (Mount Albert, ON) connected with Lerone Robinson (Vancouver, BC) for a 50 yard touchdown pass with 16 seconds left in the game to give them the one-point edge. It marked the second consecutive week that the Huskies pulled out a single point victory with under a minute to play in the game, having defeated Mount Allison last week 27-26.
The Subway player of the game, Scott was 22 for 23 on the day with 288 passing yards.
The visiting Huskies drew first blood with a one yard touchdown run from Liam O’Brien (Parksville, BC) early in the first quarter. The major came on Saint Mary’s first series of the game, with the drive set up after DeAndre Smith (Dunn, NC) picked off a John Millar (Ottawa, ON) pass for a Huskies interception. Brian Hope (Port Coquitlan, BC) missed on the point after attempt as the Huskies held an early 6-0 lead.
The X-Men replied with a short touchdown of their own as AUS leading rusher Jordan Socholotiuk (Fort McMurray, AB) punched in a one yard run at 4:22 of the opening quarter.
Saint Mary’s conceded a safety late in the quarter to give StFX a 9-6 advantage after 15 minutes of play.
The second quarter brought no scoring for either side. With the Huskies pressing deep in the StFX zone at 1st and goal with just over a minute to play, X-Men defensive back Nathaniel Fermin (Pickering, ON) picked off a Kaleb Scott pass in the end zone to stop the attack.
The score remained 9-6 in favor of StFX at halftime.
The X-Men increased their lead to 15-6 as Kaion Julien-Grant (Toronto, ON) pulled in a 16-yard Miller pass in double coverage in the end zone. The point-after kick was missed by Jonathan Heidebrecht (Camrose, AB). He made up for it by booting a 35 yard field goal four minutes later to give the X-Men an 18-6 advantage. The same score held at the end of the third quarter.
The Huskies closed the gap four minutes into the fourth quarter when Hope kicked a 21 yard field goal to pull them to within nine points.
(photo credit: Kevin Jarrold)
Queen’s (54), Windsor (10)
Source: Windsor Lancers
The Lancers hosted the Queen’s Gaels on Saturday for their Alumni Weekend football game. Despite a promising opening drive to the game that notched a field goal, the Lancers fell to the visiting Gaels 54-10.
The loss to the Gaels drops the Lancers to 0-6 on the season, while Queen’s earned their first win of the year and sit 1-4.
GAME STATS
Marvin Gaynor broke the century mark on the ground for the second straight game. Gaynor ran for 109 yards on 17 carries and a touchdown, averaging 6.4 yards a carry.
Daniel Metcalfe led the Lancers on defense with 15 tackles, a forced fumble, and an interception. The Lancers defence forced four turnovers on the day.
Clark Green had a good day punting, dropping three of his seven inside the 20 as well as booming a 49 yard boot, while Lancer quarterback Ben Bergamin went 18-33-1 for 236 yards.
Queen’s was led by quarterback Nate Hobbs who completed 25 passes on 33 attempts for 486 yards and four touchdowns.
Chris Osei-Kusi was Hobbs favourite target with three touchdowns and 226 yards on eight receptions, while on the ground Jake Puskas had 139 yards and a TD on 20 carries.
GAME ACTION
In addition to welcoming the Queen’s Gaels to Alumni Field, the Lancers were also welcoming home alumni. The Lancers gave their alumni something to cheer about early as they marched the opening possession into Gaels territory. Though Queen’s toughed up, the Lancers were able to score a field goal to take the lead early at 3-0.
The rest of the first half would be all Gaels as they would score 16 straight points to close the half. The Lancers, despite three first half turnovers by their defense could not find the offensive precision that they had on the first drive.
The Gaels came out strong to start the second quarter and a series of Lancers miscues would allow for the Gaels offense to score 21 points in five minutes. The Lancers simply could not find any rhythm of offense after the first drive as the game slipped further and further away.
UP NEXT
Windsor will use their bye week over Thanksgiving to re-group and heal a number of injuries as they prepare for the McMaster Marauders on Saturday October 14th in Hamilton. The game kicks off at 1:00pm and can be seen live on www.oua.tv.
(Photo credit: Jon Halpenny)
Guelph (53), Waterloo (49)
Source: Waterloo Warriors
The Waterloo Warriors owe much of their success on the football field this season to their youthful exuberance. But late in their home finale against the Guelph Gryphons on Saturday, that turned into inexperienced miscues at the worst possible time.
Gryphons running back Johnny Augustine scampered in from 22 yards with just 23 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter to give Guelph a come-from-behind 53-49 victory over the Warriors in a wild Reunion game at Warrior Field on Saturday afternoon.
Guelph’s game-winning drive was set up by a pair of poorly-timed Waterloo penalties – an offsides call on a kickoff, followed by a personal foul on the re-kick – that gave Guelph a short field, down 49-46. Originally, Guelph was poised to start their final drive from inside their own 10-yard line, but the flags saw them begin from Waterloo’s 45. All told, the Warriors were flagged 17 times on the day.
The loss prevented Waterloo from clinching a playoff berth for the first time in 14 years, as they fell to 4-2 on the season. Meanwhile, the Gryphons rescued their postseason aspirations by moving to 3-3 on the season as they enter their bye week.
The Guelph comeback ruined another prolific day from Waterloo’s high-octane offense. The black and gold put up 552 yards of total offense, led by their quarterback duo of Lucas McConnell (Waterford/) and Tre Ford (Niagara Falls/) – the duo combined to go 17-23 for 354 yards and 2 touchdowns, while adding 107 yards and a pair of Ford touchdown runs on the ground. Tyler Ternowski (Hamilton/) also had a huge game, catching 5 passes for 247 yards and a 95-yard touchdown bomb.
The Warriors led 29-12 at halftime, with Theo Landers making his first career start under centre. The offense struggled mightily in the first 30 minutes, as Guelph registered only 3 first downs and no touchdowns – Guelph’s only major of the first half came on a Jason Richards 96-yard kickoff return.
But the Gryphons made some halftime adjustments and started tracking down the Warriors. Waterloo was resilient in extending their lead every time the Gryphons cut it down to one score, until Gabe Ferraro hit field goals of 51 and 41 yards to tie it up at 46-46 with under three minutes to play.
After forcing a Waterloo punt, the Gryphons looked poised to drive for the go-ahead score. But Guelph muffed the punt – their fifth turnover of the day, and second on special teams – to set up Waterloo kicker Caleb Girard (Waterford/) for a go-ahead 42-yard field goal with 76 seconds to play. On the day, Girard went 4-5 with 5 extra points.
That led to the back-to-back flags on the Waterloo kick coverage unit, giving Guelph instant life. While the Gryphons were already in range for a tying field goal, Augustine rushed in for the decisive blow with under a minute to play. On the day, Augustine rushed for 91 yards and 3 touchdowns, while Landers added 106 yards and a touchdown on the ground.
On the defensive side of the ball, the Warriors got big performances from Michael Reid (Sault Ste. Marie/), with 8 solo tackles, and Brandon Corelli (Sault Ste. Marie/), who registered a sack, a forced fumble, and an interception in his final regular season home game. Harjas Bal (Brampton/) also added a pick, while Paul Kaija (Sarnia/) registered 1.5 sacks.
The Warriors won’t have much time to dwell on the tough loss, as they’ll head to Kingston on Thursday, October 5 to take on the Queen’s Gaels on the short pre-Thanksgiving week. Kickoff from Richardson Stadium is slated for 6:30 pm.
(Photo Credit: Kha Vo)
Western (29), Laurier (13)
Source: Justin Fauteux, Laurier Golden Hawks
(WATERLOO, Ont. Sept. 30, 2017) — The Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks men’s football team fell 29-13 to the Western Mustangs Saturday afternoon in front of a Homecoming crowd of 7,166 at University Stadium.
The loss is the Golden Hawks’ first of the season, dropping them to 4-1. The Mustangs stay undefeated, improving to 6-0.
Western quarterback Chris Merchant had a career day running the ball, rushing for 143 yards, leading a Mustangs run game that racked up 361 yards on the ground. Alex Taylor also had a big day for the Mustangs, running for 124 yards, while Cedric Joseph chipped in 80 rushing yards and scored both Mustang touchdowns.
For the Golden Hawks, receiver Kurleigh Gittens Jr. (Ottawa, Ont.) finished one off the U Sports record for catches in a game, making 18 receptions for 174 yards. The current national record of 19 catches in a game was set by former Golden Hawk Andre Talbot in 2000 and tied by Alberta’s Tylor Henry last season.
The win was a measure of revenge for the Mustangs, who fell 43-40 to the Golden Hawks in last year’s Yates Cup after a 21-point Laurier comeback in the fourth quarter.
“Western is a good football team and I give credit to them because they were the better team today,” said Laurier head coach Michael Faulds. “I thought defensively at times we did a decent job. Any time you can hold Western at 29 points that is not a bad day at the office.”
It was tough going for both offences through the first two quarters as both teams’ top-ranked defensive units kept the scoring limited mostly to field goals.
Both teams scored on their opening drives of the game, trading field goals in the first few minutes with Western’s Marc Liegghio hitting from 39 yards before Laurier’s Nathan Mesher (Waterloo, Ont.) answered with a 21-yard field goal. Mesher finished the game 2/3 on field goals while Liegghio went 5/5.
The Mustangs were the first team to find the endzone when Joseph scored a five-yard rushing touchdown with 3:32 left in the first half to put the Mustangs up 16-6, a scoreline the teams carried into halftime.
After a long stretch of scoreless football, Joseph scored his second rushing touchdown of the game with 2:39 left in the third quarter, running it in from 34 yards out.
The Golden Hawks scored their lone major of the game with 8:34 to play in the fourth quarter when Michael Knevel (Brantford, Ont.) threw his 10th touchdown of the season, hitting Daniel Bennett (Scarborough, Ont.) for his second touchdown in as many weeks.
“Offensively we need to finish drives- we can’t settle for field goals,” said Faulds. “We need to put up more points against a high powered offence.”
Knevel set a new career high for completions in a game, finishing 33/45 for 317 yards and touchdown, recording his fourth game this season with at least 300 passing yards. Levondre Gordon (Mississauga, Ont.) led the way on the ground for the Hawks, rushing for 107 yards on 18 carries — his second-straight 100-yard game and third of the season.
Fifth-year linebacker Brandon Calver (London, Ont.) was the Golden Hawks’ leading tackler, picking up 11 total (eight solo) and adding a sack. The Hawks also got a sack from safety Scott Hutter (London, Ont.).
The Golden Hawks are still looking for their first regular-season win against Western since 2006, a Mustangs regular-season winning streak that now spans ten games. The Hawks’ Yates Cup win last season snapped a 13-game winning streak for Western against Laurier, including regular season and playoffs.
Next week the Golden Hawks travel to Toronto to take on the York Lions, kicking off the Thanksgiving weekend with a Thursday night game. The Hawks hold a 38-6-0 all-time record against York and won the most recent meeting 74-3 last season. Kickoff at York’s Alumni Field is 7 p.m. on Oct. 5.
Jackson Bennett (05) of the Ottawa Gee Gees. USports football action Panda Game between the Carleton Ravens and the uOttawa Gee Gees at TD Place Stadium, in Ottawa, ON, Canada, (Photographed by Marc Bourget/www.marcbourget.ca)
Carleton (33), Ottawa (30)
Source: Ottawa Gee-Gees
In front of another sell out crowd, the Gee-Gees were unable to get their first Panda Game in in four years, despite leading the game with two-minutes remaining.
The Gee-Gee defence played lights out football, however, the Ravens were able to do enough to keep putting points on the board.
The game was sent to overtime on the foot of fifth-year kicker Lewis Ward, and after two back-and-forth periods the game fell into the hands of the Ravens’ favour on a touchdown run from quarterback Michael Arruda.
Freshman quarterback Alex Lavric played very well for the Gee-Gees, finishing with 212 yards, three touchdowns, and no interceptions. The Ravens’ defensive line harassed the rookie throughout, but after settling in, he was able to command the offence and put essential points on the board throughout.
“He’s going to learn from it,” said Gee-Gees head coach Jamie Barresi on Lavric’s performance. “He threw three laser shots for touchdowns, didn’t throw an interception. He also got more and more comfortable, seeing more things as the game went along.”
A touchdown run by Bryce Vieira in the second overtime period, was called back for a penalty, a mistake that proved to be the difference maker. A 15-yard unnecessary roughness penalty on the Gee-Gees defence put the Ravens in better scoring position, enabling them to go for the win instead of the tie.
Fourth-year wide receiver Kalem Beaver had a solid game receiving and returning punts, he tallied 89 yards and a touchdown receiving and a 100 yards on returns.
“It’s a heartbreaker for sure,” said Beaver. “I’m a fourth-year guy so if I’m not focused and positive in practice then other guys will follow. I have to stay positive and give them something to look up to.”
Going forward, the team now sits with a 4-2 record going into their bye week. Next up, they will take on the Waterloo Warriors at home in two weeks and close out the regular season on the road at Western on Oct. 21.
The team’s head coach is confident that his team will rebound quickly and that the loss will not weigh heavily on them going forward.
“It’s not a tough week [ahead],” said Barresi. “We’ll be fine.”
Kickoff against Waterloo is set for 1 p.m. on Oct. 14, tickets are available at tickets.geegees.ca. The game will also be broadcasted live on OUA.tv.
York (2), McMaster (32)
Source: Michael Grobe, McMaster Athletics
HAMILTON (September 30, 2017) – The No. 7 McMaster Marauders knocked off the York Lions 32-2 during homecoming weekend at Ron Joyce Stadium in Hamilton, Ont.
The win improved McMaster’s record to 4-1 while dropping York to 1-4. McMaster now sits tied with Wilfrid Laurier for second place in the OUA football standings with three weeks left to play in the regular season.
Jordan Lyons of Burlington, Ont., had one touchdown and collected a workmanlike 186 yards on 25 carries in the victory over York. It marked just the second time in Lyons career that he has broken 100 yards rushing, and his final total was his career high.
McMaster’s defence gave up just two points all game and extended their streak of not allowing a touchdown to 12 quarters. They gave up a mere 143 offensive yards, which improved their per-game average to 287 yards for the season, ranking them second in the OUA behind only Western (286 yards).
Rookies Justice Allin of Toronto and Jackson White of Cambridge, Ont. also contributed in the win, with Allin pulling down a touchdown and registering a career high 141 all-purpose yards. White was 19 for 25 with one touchdown pass and a career-high 303-yards passing.
For York, Erick Kimmerly of Oshawa, Ont., recorded a team high 52 yards receiving on five carries while quarterback Brett Hunchak of Calgary posted 125 yards passing on 16 completions.
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED: McMaster’s kicker Adam Preocanin of Burlington, Ont., recorded 17 points in the win against York. He registered five field goals with his longest being 42 yards. He added field goals from 12, 14, 18 and 15 yards. He also tallied a rouge, an extra point and helped set up a bizarre scoring play on a blocked field goal in the third.
FINDING NEW WAYS TO SCORE: In the third quarter, with the Marauders leading 17-1, Preocanin had a 25-yard field goal attempt blocked, with the Marauders recovering after a scrum on the goal line. That unique play set up a one-yard touchdown punch-in by Jordan Lyons to push the score to 24-1.
LOOK SMART WITH FRIENDS: McMaster’s defence has gone 186 minutes and 56 seconds without allowing a touchdown. The last touchdown scored against McMaster came against Western (Sept. 9) with 6:57 remaining in that game, when Mustang Cedric Joseph of Montreal scored on a three-yard run. Overall, McMaster has only given up four touchdowns all season (three vs. Western in week 3 and one vs. Saskatchewan in exhibition play).
HOMECOMING: A total of 4,502 McMaster faithful and alumni watched the Marauders dust the Lions 32-2 on a cool and sunny afternoon at Ron Joyce Stadium.
BIG SCREEN: Ron Joyce Stadium is celebrating its tenth season, and on Saturday, McMaster unveiled a brand new scoreboard and high definition jumbotron to their game day experience. The screen features a high definition 32’x19′ high definition screen. Paul Leskew of the Scoreboard Man, along with RBC, made the video board and scoreboard possible.
UP NEXT: It will be a short turnaround for McMaster, with the Thanksgiving weekend approaching. McMaster (4-1) will travel to Toronto to play under the lights on Oct. 5 vs. the Toronto Varsity Blues. Toronto holds a 1-4 record and are enjoying a bye this week. Their only win of the year came back on Sept. 4 with a 19-12 victory over Windsor. Kickoff is set for 7:00pm at Varsity Stadium in Toronto.
QUOTABLE:
McMaster running back Justice Allan on today’s game flow…
“We wanted to put on a show for the fans, first and foremost, especially with the alumni in the building. That was an expectation for us. The first half was slow, and I think right now we’re a first half team. We need to work on the first half, but we had a great speech that motivated everybody, and we came out fired up in the second.
Allin on the McMaster’s defensive play this season…
“We can always expect our defence to show up.”
McMaster head coach Greg Knox on slow starts to games
“We’re a young, inexperienced group, and what’s happening is that it’s taking us awhile to get where we need to get emotionally. We’ll need to collectively do a better job of getting into a mindset and getting mentally and physically ready to answer the bell at opening kickoff.”
Knox on his defensive play to date…
“We’re limiting mistakes more and more. That’s important if you want to be a championship-calibre defence. That’s probably the biggest step forward, and really what we’re aiming to do. If you limit mistakes, you force teams to beat you instead of beating yourself.”
Knox on establishing the run during today’s game…
“It’s critical to be a balanced offensive attack. Sometimes it’s easier against throw the ball all over the field. But we need to be able to run the ball come playoff time against playoff-calibre defences. It’s best to establish that every step along the way over the course of the season.”
Jordan Lyons on the causes of the Marauders slow starts:
“Little things go wrong. Guys make small mistakes, and those add up. We’ve just got to come together as a whole and start getting it. That’s what starts happening in these second halves. Everyone executes on their assignments and good things happen.”
Lyons on the danger of complacency with the schedule ahead:
“We have to understand that we’re young and we’re not a perfect team yet. We’re not a team that can just come out and destroy anyone when we feel like it. We’re a team that needs to improve every week, and we want a Yates Cup. Nothing less. We’re not here to make the quarterfinals or the semis. But we have to build to that, and little steps like today are part of that.”
Lyons on the backfield combination with Allin:
“We work off of each other. He’s a little faster than I am, but we work off of each other. I do the inside work and he does the outside work. And then we have packages where he can get out of the backfield and I can sit in and block. He’s a great guy and I’ve taken him under my wing and I just keep teaching him. He’s getting better and better every week.”
Sherbrooke (31), Concordia (13)
Source: Concordia Stingers
Despite a difficult 31-13 loss to the visiting Sherbrooke Vert & Or, Concordia Stinger defensive tackle Wade Leeroy Cyr and wide receiver Jarryd Taylor were honoured for their outstanding play in the 31st annual Shrine Bowl game on Saturday afternoon.
Cyr, in his first year with the Stingers, was awarded the Ted Elsby Memorial Trophy presented to the outstanding defensive lineman in the Shrine Bowl game. The honour is presented by the Montreal Alouettes Alumni Association in honour of Elsby, a perennial all-star with the Alouettes for 13 seasons and also a dedicated Shriner.
A native of St. Eustache, Que., Cyr was also presented the Grant Peterson Trophy as the outstanding defensive player in the game. He led all defensive players in the game with nine tackles and one assist for a total of 9.5.
Taylor, a second-year receiver from LaSalle, Que., was awarded the John Gilday Memorial Trophy as the outstanding offensive player. He caught eight passes for 108 yards.
Two patients from the Shriners Hospital were also honoured for their efforts to promote the game. Broden Nagel, 11, and Nia Belanger, 12, received plaques from 2017 Shrine Bowl chairperson Mike Keys.
A few Sherbrooke football players were also acknowledged. Alexandre Gagnon was honoured for his play on the defensive line. Keith Sanscartier was the Vert & Or defensive MVP and Frédérick Cadieux-Boudrias was the offensive MVP.
The Shriners were hoping to raise in excess of $35,000 at the game.
Friday, Sept. 29
Alberta (36), Manitoba (25)
Source: Manitoba Bisons
WINNIPEG – In a game that had a unique weekday afternoon kickoff start time, it seemed like the host Manitoba Bisons did not wake up in time as they let a fourth quarter lead slip away and lost 36-25 to the Alberta Golden Bears in Canada West football action on Friday, September 29 at Investors Group Field in front of 1,000 spectators.
With the road win, Alberta earns their first win of the 2017 campaign and improve to 1-4 record while Manitoba drops into a fifth place tie in CW with an identical 1-4 record after the loss.
After a back-and-forth affair through three quarters, it seemed the home side might have some momentum after a 33 yard run by Bison rookie Somto Anyadike which pushed the lead to 25-16 for the Herd, only just a minute into the fourth.
Instead, the Bears responded with a quick three minute drive that culminated with Ed Ilnicki rumbling in from two yards out to change the game to the visitors’ favour.
“Credit to them…they destroyed our momentum after we scored in the fourth,” stated Bison starting quarterback Des Catellier – in his second ever start for the Bisons – after the contest. “They out physical us and we weren’t making a play when we needed to make one and didn’t respond when they scored.”
Alberta continued to score. The eventual winning touchdown occurred on the next possession as Brad Baker found Nathan Rowe for a 14 yard strike over a Bison defender halfway through fourth. The Bears salted away the game late with another Baker-Rowe connection from eight yards after Baker avoided the rush and the Golden Bears had scored 20 unanswered points to finish off the win.
“Shocked…hard for our chances in the playoff race,” said a dejected Bison football head coach Brian Dobie. “I don’t believe we had a constant effort overall with too many bad plays, drop balls, bad penalties. It felt like a steamroller ran over us.”
The name of the steamroller was Ed Ilnicki. The elusive back churned up 278 rushing yards on a whopping 44 carries for a 6.3 average on the ground and was the difference maker. The fifth year veteran continues to be the conference rushing leader and it showed as he constantly broke through tackles and made several Bisons miss on numerous runs.
Alberta also had a strong game from Baker who went 24-37 for 288 passing yards and three TDs while Rowe had a game-high 11 catches for 162 receiving yards plus three touchdowns. Ilnicki also contributed 63 receiving yards on five catches for 341 all-purpose yards.
Manitoba was paced by Anyadike with his 68 rush yards on only eight carries while Catellier was 15-31 and 238 yards with 1 TD and 1 interception. Ross ended up with five catches for 51 yards and one touchdown and Dylan Schrot added three catches for 93 receiving yards.
On defence, Tak Landry was leading tackler for the Bears with seven total tackles and the team had three forced fumbles and five break-ups while Bison James Mau had a game-high 9.5 tackles and one break-up in the loss.
Manitoba led 15-13 after scoring twice in the first half when Theo Deezar plunged in from one yard and Shai Ross grabbed a 13 yard pass from Catellier. Alberta scored once in the first 30 minutes when Rowe secured his first score of the game.
For team stats, Alberta led 42-19 in first downs, 595-357 in total offence, forced turnovers 3-0 and time possession was 38:28 to 21:32.
Both teams are on the conference bye and resume action in two weeks as Alberta host Regina while Manitoba travels to #2 Calgary, both games on October 14.
Calgary (31), UBC (17)
Source: UBC Thunderbirds
It took the Canada West leading Calgary Dinos (5-0) a while to get rolling but once they did there was no stopping them, handing the UBC Thunderbirds (3-2) a 31-17 loss at Thunderbird Stadium Friday night. The Calgary win spoiled UBC’s ‘Black Out’ night, which saw them wear a black and gold third jersey, the first time a UBC football team has worn a third jersey in the program’s 93 year history.
The ‘Birds held a 10-9 lead at the half while both teams played a stellar game on defence to that point, but a three touchdown, 21-point third quarter put the game away in favour of the visitors who have now won five straight to open the season, while the ‘Birds now find themselves in a tie with Regina for second in the conference.
“We need to have more from our offence,” said a frustrated UBC head coach Blake Nill immediately following the game.
“If you look at how many dropped passes we had today, we just need more. Our return game, the only time we had a decent return we fumbled it, we shot ourselves in the foot. But let’s make no mistake about it, we as a staff were out-coached. We have to do better as a staff but we also have to have execution on the
field.”
The T-Birds defence stood tall to start the game shutting out the Dinos for a quarter for the first time all season long.
Calgary turned the ball over twice in the opening frame, the second of which gave UBC quarterback Michael O’Connor instant field position which he used for a 42-yard touchdown toss to Trivel Pinto giving the ‘Birds a 7-0 lead following the convert.
The Dinos were quick to respond with a major score of their own thanks to Jack McDonald’s 13-yard catch, which started the momentum swing that went fully into Calgary’s favour in the second half.
On their first possession of the third quarter the Dinos quickly moved down field with a pair of deep Adam Sinagra passes including a 20-yard touchdown throw to Michael Klukas giving Calgary a 16-10 lead which they would not look back from.
“We started wearing down a bit, we started not executing and then they just rolled on us,” added Nill who felt his defence was on the field far too much.
Calgary’s Jeshrun Antwi scored the next two touchdowns of the game, one in the air and one on the ground while the Dinos took a 30-10 lead heading into the fourth.
Veteran UBC receiver Alex Morrison got the ‘Birds back within two possessions with a 10-yard touchdown catch with seven minutes remaining but that’s all the T-Birds would muster.
O’Connor finished the game 28-of-44 with 280 yards and two touchdowns while Pinto’s 91 yards led UBC’s offence. The ‘Birds were held to just 71 rushing yards.
The win gives the Dinos some breathing room atop the Canada West standings now four points clear of both UBC and Regina.
“We need to be able to compete with those guys,” said Nill about the number two ranked Dinos.
“Now it goes through Calgary. If we want a chance to get out of the league we have to win in Calgary.”
The Thunderbirds now have a week off of game action before two straight on the road starting in Saskatchewan against the 2-3 Huskies on Saturday, October 14th.
Regina (50), Saskatchewan (40)
Source: Regina Rams
The University of Regina never trailed and the offence clicked all night long in a 50-40 road win over the Saskatchewan Huskies on Friday night at Griffiths Stadium, helping the Rams improve to 3-2 and move into second place in the Canada West standings.
But while the offence put up some impressive numbers, it was a defensive play late in the ball game that finally put the home side away.
With the Huskies down by 10 and just over two minutes left to go, Rams second-year defensive lineman Nicholas Dheilly not only stripped the ball from Saskatchewan quarterback Kyle Siemens, but recovered the fumble. Two plays later, Atlee Simon was in the end zone to make it a three-possession game and end any hopes of a late Saskatchewan comeback.
Nicholas Dheilly with the biggest defensive play of the game and the Rams get the ball back in Saskatchewan territory with 2 minutes to go! pic.twitter.com/imnST7Z5Gl
— U. of Regina Rams (@reginarams) September 30, 2017
“We had some outstanding performances tonight by, really, a whole bunch of guys,” Rams head coach Steve Bryce said. “But we got superior performances by Noah (Picton), Atlee (Simon), and (Ryan) Schienbein. They really took control of the game, and the offensive line blocked incredibly well tonight and opened up a ton of holes for Atlee. And Nicholas Dheilly, he’s not 100% yet so to come up with that crucial sack for us late was such a massive play.”
Noah Picton and Atlee Simon drove the offence for the Rams. Picton completed 33 of his 44 pass attempts for 384 yards and joined Darryl Leason and Teale Orban as the only Rams players ever to throw five touchdown passes in a single U SPORTS game. Picton also ran one in himself in the third quarter for his first touchdown run of the season.
Simon had a fantastic night in the win, rushing 18 times for 163 yards as he was a beneficiary of the blocking of Bryan Robinson, Thomas Stanton, Roe Borgmann, Michele Vecchio, and Theren Churchill. Simon, who also caught seven passes for 72 yards to finish with a game-high 235 all-purpose yards, had one touchdown run and one touchdown catch and is now tied with Jason Clermont for the University of Regina’s all-time lead with 26 career majors.
Ryan Schienbein was Picton’s top receiver, catching 10 balls for 125 yards including a couple of the highlight-reel variety. Schienbein and Mitchell Picton both had a pair of touchdown catches, while Mitch Thompson returned to the lineup and had seven catches for 69 yards.
Nick Cross led the Rams defence in tackles, getting credit for five solo and four assisted.
The loss overshadowed a fine effort by Saskatchewan’s Siemens, who completed 37 of his 57 pass attempts for 489 yards while matching Picton with five touchdown passes. Mitch Hillis had seven catches for 99 yards and hauled in three touchdowns, while Chad Braun and Samuel Baker also had touchdown receptions for the Huskies. Brett Boechler led the U of S defence with 10 solo tackles and four assisted tackles.
Thanks to Calgary’s road win over UBC on Friday, the Rams move into second place in the conference standings. The Rams and the Thunderbirds both have 3-2 records, but Regina’s Week 1 win over UBC gives the Rams the tiebreaker – for now, as those two teams will close out the Canada West schedule against each other in Vancouver.
The Rams will now enjoy the Canada West bye week before returning to action against Alberta on Saturday, Oct. 15 in Edmonton.
NOAH OVER 9000
Didn’t we just do the “Noah Over 8000” note? We did, and just two weeks later the fourth-year quarterback has now become just the second quarterback in Canada West history to eclipse the 9000-yard barrier. He now has 9042 passing yards and has also pulled into second place in conference history with 651 pass completions. He trails only Teale Orban in both categories, as the former Rams pivot had 685 completions and 9449 passing yards in his five-year career.
SCHIENBEIN: HUMAN HIGHLIGHT REEL
If a picture is worth 1000 words, what’s a couple of videos worth? We’re not sure, but check out these two beauties from the third-year slotback tonight.
This leaping, one-handed touchdown catch has the Rams up 21-10 over the Huskies early in the second quarter! pic.twitter.com/0yo7voSlgw
— U. of Regina Rams (@reginarams) September 30, 2017
Just Schienbein doing Schienbein things. pic.twitter.com/RJT3JMrbiK
— U. of Regina Rams (@reginarams) September 30, 2017
MITCH TIES GOLDIE
Mitchell Picton had a relatively quiet night with four catches, but two of them were for majors as the fifth-year slotback ties former Rams receiver Chad Goldie (2004-08) for the University of Regina’s all-time lead with 21 touchdown receptions. Incidentally, of those 21, we wonder how many of them have come on this exact flag route?
And the Rams take the lead with another #TOUCHDOWN! Noah Picton to Mitchell Picton and it’s now 14-7 for the Rams in the first. pic.twitter.com/iLcaZo9C2L
— U. of Regina Rams (@reginarams) September 30, 2017
HIGH-OCTANE OFFENCES
Tonight’s game broke a record for the most points ever scored in a game involving the Rams and the Huskies. The old mark was 89, set during a 58-31 for the Rams over the Huskies in the 2001 Canada West semifinals.
Source: U Sports (Box Scores)
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