Exhibition: Calgary Dinos knock off Alberta Golden Bears in non-conference action

CALGARY – The University of Calgary Dinos used a big second quarter to build up a solid lead, holding on to defeat the Alberta Golden Bears 20-14 Saturday night in exhibition football action at Hellard Field in Calgary’s Shouldice Park.

BOX SCORE

It was clearly the first action of the season for both teams, and the Dinos and Bears substituted liberally throughout the evening to give every one of the 70-plus players dressed on each side a chance to hit the field.

The 2010 Canada West season opens next week, when the Dinos host the Saskatchewan Huskies in a re-match of a classic 2009 Hardy Cup final. The game goes Saturday, Sept. 4 with kickoff at 7 p.m. MT from McMahon Stadium, live on Shaw TV and AM 770 CHQR.

The two-time defending conference champion Dinos used four different quarterbacks and as many tailbacks on the night, doing just enough to get past their provincial rivals.

“It’s tough when you’re making substitutions so often,” said Calgary head coach Blake Nill. “But we got to see a lot of the young kids. This is an extension of training camp – it’s the first time we had live contact. I’m happy with how it went. We certainly have things to work on, and I’m sure Coach Friesen is saying the same thing right now.”

The two teams’ starters took the field to open the game but vacated it quickly, with starting quarterbacks Erik Glavic and Julian Marchand combining for just 17 passing attempts between them. Glavic, the reigning Hec Crighton winner, played just two series, going 4-for-7 for 61 yards before being replaced by Idahoan freshman Eric Dzwilewski (pictured).

Dzwilewski led the way for the lion’s share of the Dinos’ scoring on the evening. He led a 10-play, 105-yard drive that was capped off by a 10-yard Steven Lumbala touchdown early in the second quarter, and Aaron Ifield added a 12-yard field goal minutes later to give Calgary a 10-0 lead.

Calgary’s defence got into the act as well. Fourth-year defensive back Michael Lau picked off a Curtis Dell pass and ran it back 45 yards for the score, giving the Dinos a 17-0 halftime lead. It was one of three picks on the night for Calgary, with linebackers Travis Payne and Geoff Paiement also hauling in errant throws from Marchand.

The momentum shifted in the third quarter when Dell found Brad Quartel for a 10-yard TD strike just over two minutes after halftime. A pair of safeties and a 34-yard Hugh O’Neill field goal later, Calgary’s lead had been cut to 17-14 heading into the fourth.

A 23-yard field goal from freshman Johnny Mark for the Dinos was the lone scoring play of the final quarter.

For his part, Nill was pleased with the play of several of his young players.

“I think you saw the intensity that Doctor Cassama plays with tonight,” Nill observed. “Dzwilewski played well, and then you saw Andrew Kay. There’s a kid that was very highly touted coming out of high school before he did his mission, and I thought he ran the ball exceptionally hard. D.J. Whetton ran well…there’s a lot of talent on this team, and it’s just a matter of developing it and timing it right so not everybody’s peaking at the same time.”

Kay matched Lumbala for the team high with 40 rushing yards on the night with Whetton adding 31. Dzwilewski connected on four of his nine passing attempts to rack up 86 yards.

Dell played most of the game behind centre for Alberta, finishing with five completions on 14 attempts. Matthew Jarvis and Olukayode Sonuga had 53 and 51 yards, respectively, to lead the way along the ground for the Bears.

By mutual agreement between the teams, the play was blown dead as soon as the quarterback was touched, resulting in seven touch sacks for the Golden Bears, led by a pair from Kevin Chave.

Alberta returned to Edmonton immediately following the game and will begin preparations for their season opener next Saturday afternoon when they visit a newly-turfed Thunderbird Stadium in Vancouver. In the nightcap next Saturday, Calgary hosts Saskatchewan, marking the third straight year the two teams have opened the season against each other.

Source:

Calgary Sports Info