WEEK 9 CIS Football Previews

Photo credit Rob Galbraith, Calgary

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Click here for season previews of all CIS football teams.

Click here for player profiles featuring one player from each CIS football team.

October 29 – OUA playoffs

13:00 ET Laurier (4-4) at No. 8 Queen’s (6-2), The Score (TV & webcast)

KINGSTON, Ont. - The No. 8 Queen's Gaels (6-2) will kickoff their OUA playoff campaign this Saturday when they host the visiting Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks (4-4).
 
Historically, the all-time series is tied at 7-7. In their last matchup earlier this season, the Gaels put up a strong showing at Richardson Stadium as they defeated the Golden Hawks by a 58-35 score. Giovanni Aprile of Toronto stole the show as his four touchdown, 368 all purpose yard performance led the Gaels to a win.
 
The Gaels enter the playoffs as the hottest team in the OUA having won six straight games since their week two loss at Ottawa. Last week, the Gaels played a solid team game as they shutout the then-No. 1 Western Mustangs by a 37-0 score.
 
Ryan Granberg of Sherwood Park, Alta. led the Gaels on offence with a 197 yard, one touchdown performance. He opened the scoring with a dazzling 88 yard touchdown run on a nice cutback which started deep in the Gaels end. Aprile was the Gaels leading receiver on the afternoon with 94 yards on six receptions, while Justin Chapdelaine of Abbotsford, B.C. was close behind with a 91 yard performance on just three receptions. Billy McPhee of Burlington, Ont. threw for 192 yards on the afternoon before being replaced late in the game by Toronto's Ryan Mitchell who was excellent in relief, completing six of seven passes for 105 yards.
 
Defensively the Gaels were led by veteran Osie Ukwuoma of Mississauga, Ont. who had a 5.5 tackle, 2.5 sack performance in the win. Sam Sabourin of Stittsville, Ont. also had a big game up front for the Gaels with seven tackles and a sack. The Gaels got great performances from the defensive secondary as Matt Webster of Calgary led the team in tackles with 8.5 while Andrew Lue of Markham, Ont. and T.J. Chase-Dunawa of Toronto intercepted Western passes. Josh Sultana of Etobicoke, Ont. returned a fumble for a defensive touchdown.
 
The Golden Hawks enter this contest having won their way into the postseason with a 15-10 victory over the Guelph Gryphons (3-5). Shane Kelly of Basking Ridge, N.J., USA had 183 yards passing while Tyrrel Wilson of Hamilton, Ont. was Laurier's top rusher with 70 yards on nine carries.
 
Kickoff between the Gaels and Golden Hawks is set for 1:00 pm at Richardson Stadium. Playoff tickets can be purchased in advance at the Athletics and Recreation Centre Customer Service Counter or by calling Customer Service at (613) 533-2500. Ticket prices can be found here.

Source: Queen's Sports Info

13:00 ET Windsor (5-3) at Ottawa (5-3), SSN (webcast)

OTTAWA - For the second time in as many weeks, the Gee-Gees football team will play host to the Windsor Lancers at Frank Clair Stadium. Only this time around, the stakes are a lot higher. The two teams will face each other in the OUA quarterfinals—the winner will keep their hopes of winning the Vanier Cup alive, while the loser will be done for the season. Two weeks ago, Ottawa won a thrilling game against the Lancers by a 32-30 score.
 
“I got to experience some pretty big games last year, but now to come in as the starter is special. It’s do-or-die, and I feel like we will all play our best football when it counts the most. I can't wait,” said Gee-Gees fourth-year quarterback Aaron Colbon, Orleans, Ont.
 
A 51-24 road loss to McMaster led the Gee-Gees to a fourth-place finish in the OUA, instead of earning the second seed, and a first-round playoff bye. uOttawa will look to rebound from this loss, against a tough Windsor team that finished fifth in the province.
 
“I have 100 per cent confidence in the guys. We've shown all year how resilient we are, and that we can respond to adversity. We’ve put the McMaster game behind us and we are fully focused on Windsor,” said Colbon.
 
Against McMaster, Ottawa’s offence could only muster up one touchdown drive, until late in the fourth quarter, while the defence had trouble stopping the big plays. The Gee-Gees know that they must improve their play on Saturday, in order to keep their season alive.
 
“I think just finishing drives is huge for us. We all have to stay focused and we can't be hurting ourselves with penalties,” said Colbon. “Windsor has a good defence and we have to be crisp and not make mistakes at crucial times in the game.”
 
Be sure to cheer on your Gee-Gees at Frank Clair Stadium on October 29, in what is sure to be an excitement-filled playoff football game!
 
uOttawa students can purchase advance tickets for just $6.

Source: Ottawa Sports Info

October 29 – regular season

13:00 ET No. 6 Sherbrooke (6-2) at No. 5 Montreal (6-2), Radio-Canada (TV & webcast)

13:00 ET No. 2 Laval (7-1) at Bishop’s (3-5), SSN (webcast)

Click here for the full game notes

THIS WEEK: The Bishop’s Gaiters close out the regular season with a visit from the No. 2-ranked Laval Rouge et Or.
 
NOTHIN’ BUT NET: The game will be webcast on SSN Canada, available at www.ssncanada.ca
 
FOLLOW LIVE: There are a number of ways to follow the game live:
 
·       Score and quarter updates will be available at www.gaiters.ca and at @BishopsGaiters on Twitter.

·       Live stats will be available at http://livestats.prestosports.com/bishops.
 
·       The Gaiters’ in-game live chat will return this week. Follow the links at www.gaiters.ca to join in.
 
TICKETS, PLEASE: Tickets are available at the gate. Adult tickets cost $13. Concession tickets are priced at $5 (Champlain/high school students), $3 (Bishop’s students) and $2 (children under 12).
 
THE RECORDS: The Gaiters head into the contest with a 3-5 record and in a tie for fourth place in the CIS Quebec conference with the Concordia Stingers. Laval is 7-1 and clinched the league pennant with their win over Sherbrooke last week.

LAST TIME OUT: A 15-yard catch by Shantino Wilson with 23 seconds left gave the Gaiters a come-from-behind victory, 21-18, over the McGill Redmen on Saturday afternoon at Coulter Field. Wilson's touchdown, the first of his career, was the culmination of a ten-play, 68-yard drive over 1:37, as the Gaiters completed a comeback from an 11-0 halftime deficit. Jordan Heather tossed a pair of touchdowns, as he also found Quincy Van De Cruize early in the third quarter to start the comeback. He finished with 350 yards passing, his fourth 300-yard game of the season. McGill took an 11-0 lead on a 42-yard reception by Tristan Baldini and a pair of safety touches. The other McGill touchdown came on an interception return by Jesse Briggs. A pair of singles and a field goal by Mathieu Paquette rounded out the scoring for Bishop’s.

PLAYOFFS?: Since Concordia holds the tiebreaker over Bishop’s, the playoff scenarios are much simpler than in recent years. In order to make the postseason, the Gaiters must defeat Laval, and McGill must defeat Concordia. Any other set of results leaves the Gaiters in fifth place.

LAST MEETING:  Sébastien Lévesque ran for 131 yards and two touchdowns as No. 3-ranked Laval defeated the Gaiters, 57-9, on Oct. 16 in Quebec City. The Rouge et Or led 19-9 at halftime, but pulled away with four touchdowns in the third quarter. Laval also got touchdowns from Charles Lambert, Maxime Boutin, Guillaume Rioux, and Christian Lavaud. Four field goals and a single by Boris Bede, along with a safety touch, rounded out Laval's scoring. The Bishop's scoring came courtesy of a four-yard pass from Jordan Heather to Alexander Fox in the second quarter, and singles by Mathieu Paquette and O'Shane Daley.

THE SERIES: All-time, the Gaiters are 6-20 against Laval. The teams first met in a league contest on September 2, 1996, a 22-11 win for the Gaiters at the PEPS stadium. The Gaiters have not beaten Laval since a 1-0 victory on November 3, 2001, a streak of 12 straight wins for the Rouge et Or.

SENIOR MOMENT: Today marks the last regular-season home game for the Gaiters’ seniors. The Gaiters have three fifth-year players: receiver Steven Turner, linebackers Tyler Jutras and Jermaine Lewis-Parris, along with six fourth-year players: Harrison Maloney, John Jean-Baptiste, Kenrick Ritchie, Kiron Clarke, Pier-Luc Champagne and David Haddrall

HE’S SPECIAL: Second-year receiver Alexander Fox was named the QUFL Special Teams Player of the Week last week, after posting 266 all-purpose yards, his second game over 250 all-purpose yards this season. Last week, he gained 91 yards on seven punt returns, ran a missed field goal back for 43 yards, and had two kickoff returns for 48 yards. He also made a pair of key receptions on the Gaiters’ game-winning drive, as he finished with seven catches for 84 yards.

PASSING FANCY: The Gaiters remain the top-rated pass offence in Quebec, and the fourth-highest nationwide, with an average of 296.9 yards per game. Gaiter quarterbacks Jordan Heather, Alex Rivet and Shane McDonald have combined to go 173-for-321 for 2,375 yards with 15 touchdowns. The Gaiters have recorded five 300-yard passing games this year. With their 350 yards last week, Bishop’s moved to within 100 yards of their all-time single-season team passing record. They need only 82 yards to break the record of 2,457 yards, set in 1995.

TAKE YOUR PICK: Bishop’s has made a league-leading 13 interceptions this year (the fifth-highest total in the CIS), and knocked down 30 pass attempts. McMaster leads the country with 19 picks. Ryland Smith and Tyler Jutras lead the Gaiters, and are tied for 10th nationally, with three picks this year, while O’Shane Daley and Marcus Lam-Peters each have a pair of thefts. Smith leads the CIS with nine passes knocked down.

THE HEATHER REPORT: Third-year quarterback Jordan Heather is fifth in the nation with 268.6 passing yards per game. The leader is McMaster’s Kyle Quinlan, who averaged 341.6 yards per game. Heather has posted an efficiency rating of over 100 in six games this year, and is second in the country in completions (161), attempts (296) and total yards (2149). His 14 touchdowns is also fifth nationally. Heather also leads the conference in “total offence” (rushing + passing yards combined)  with 280.5 yards per game.

FOX ON THE RUN: Second-year receiver Alexander Fox leads the conference with 1,110 all-purpose yards, averaging 138.8 yards per game. Fox has had two 100-yard receiving games this year, and has had two games over 250 all-purpose yards. He is now 10th on the league single-season all-purpose yards list (league records in this category start in 2002). The team record is 1,533 set by Jamall Lee in 2007.

CFL GAITERS UPDATE: With the injury to starting running back Andrew Harris, Jamall Lee may see more playing time this Saturday, as his B.C. Lions take on the Edmonton Eskimos. Lee has 13 Special Teams Tackles this year, and a fumble recovery. So far this year offensively, he has three carries for 8 yards. Among the other Lions-Gaiters, James Yurichuk made made one defensive tackle and one special teams tackle in the Lions’ loss to Hamilton. Two weeks ago, Yurichuk excecuted a dribbled ball manoeuvre for the second time in his career, as he kicked the ball 24 yards forward and picked it up in a game against Calgary. Yurichuk how has 32 total tackles (21 defensive, 11 special teams) on the year. Shawn Gore is expected to return to action this week, after being scratched last week. He has 52 catches for 727 yards. Tim Cronk has five special teams tackles and a touchdown, while Dan McCullough has seven special teams tackles. Altogether, ex-Gaiters have accounted for 24.2% (36 of 149) of the Lions’ Special Teams Tackles this season. Elsewhere in the league,  Stamps rookie Junior Turner has made 23 tackles, including a pair of sacks, while Justin Conn has a pair of special teams tackles. Saskatchewan’s Mathieu Boulay returned to action on Sept. 24, after spending two weeks on the injured list. He made his first career tackle September 4 vs. Winnipeg. Meanwhile, Hamilton’s Kyle Jones is back on the one-game injured list. He has nine total tackles this season.

TODAY IN GAITERS HISTORY: On October 29, 1955, the Gaiters defeated the Royal Military College by the score of 12-9, as they improved their record to 5-0 on the year (4-0 OSLAA “B”). John Pratt and Don Stringer scored touchdowns for the Gaiters, who would go on to defeat the Macdonald Aggies next week to win their second consecutive OSLAA “B” title. The 1955 Gaiters were inducted into the RBC Wall of Distinction in 2009.

UP NEXT: If the Gaiters make the playoffs, they would have a return match against the top-seeded Rouge et Or, with the game set for Saturday afternoon in Quebec City.

Source: Bishop's Sports Info

13:00 ET Concordia (3-5) at McGill (0-8), SSN (webcast)

13:00 CT Regina (2-5) at Manitoba (3-4), Shaw (TV – in Manitoba)

WINNIPEG - The Manitoba Bisons football team (3-4) hosts the Regina Rams (2-5) in the final week of Canada West football action on Saturday, October 29 with game time at 1 p.m. CT. The game can be seen on SHAW TV Manitoba and heard exclusively live on radio at 101.5 FM (umfm.com) with a special pre-game starting at 12 p.m. (noon) CT. Derek Taylor will be handling play-by-play with Matt Rollason as the colour commentary.

Manitoba is searching for the fourth and final Canada West playoff spot (first official post-season berth since 2007). #1 Calgary is in first with a perfect 7-0 record followed by #7 UBC at 5-2 and then #10 Saskatchewan at 4-3. Regina sits in fifth at 2-5 but can leapfrog Manitoba with a win on the last week of the season. Manitoba could still finish as high as third if they win and Saskatchewan loses to sixth place Alberta (0-7).

This is the second of two regular season meetings this season between the two teams with Manitoba losing 26-18 at Regina on Sept. 30 and also losing 15-7 in pre-season (Aug. 27/11). In the last 13 seasons since the Rams enter Canada West, the Bisons have a regular season record of 13-8 and hold an impressive 8-2 record at home versus the Rams. Manitoba has lost the last five meeting between the two teams (four losses in a row at Regina) and last won against them in 2008 season (Aug. 30: W 25-12).

This will be the last game played by the Bisons at University Stadium (U of Manitoba campus). Next season, Manitoba will move into the new Stadium being completed on campus that will house both the Bisons and the CFL’s Winnipeg Blue Bombers. For 44 years (spanning 1967-2011 – with one year away in 1973), the Bisons home has been University Stadium where three teams has captured the Vanier Cup (CIS National Championship) and six Hardy Cup (Canada West conference championship).

In team conference 2011 stats, starting with scoring offence, Manitoba is third (27.4 points per game); while Regina is sixth (16.6 ppg) and in scoring defence, the Bisons are fifth at 26.7 ppg and the Rams are fourth with 25.1. In total offence, Manitoba is third with 439.6 yards per game and Regina is fourth at 352.6 ypg. In total defence, Manitoba is fourth with 403.9 yards per game and the Rams are second at 347.6.

Key individual offensive players for both teams, starting at running back with Rams Adrian Charles first in conference with 818 yards while Bisons Anthony Coombs third at 553. At QB, Bisons Khaleal Williams is second with 1710 yards and Regina’s Zach Oleynik fourth at 985. In receptions, Rams Mark McConkey is fourth with 31 and Bisons Tyson Takasaki is eighth at 23. Bison kicker Nick Boyd is second in scoring with 64 points.

Source: Manitoba Sports Info

13:00 MT No. 10 Saskatchewan (4-3) at Alberta (0-7), CanadaWest.tv (webcast)

SASKATOON - After clinching a spot in the postseason last week, the University of Saskatchewan Huskies will look to lock up home field advantage for the first round of playoffs.

The Huskies will close out the 2011 regular season with a date in Edmonton against the University of Alberta Golden Bears Saturday.

A victory combined with a UBC Thunderbirds loss to the University of Calgary Dinos Saturday would ensure the Huskies the home playoff game on November 4 at Griffiths Stadium in PotashCorp Park. A loss would send the Huskies on the road. Depending on the outcome of Huskies and other Canada West football games, Saskatchewan could finish anywhere from second to fourth in the standings.

Since 1999, the Huskies have won 14 of their last 18 games against Alberta including a 38-7 win in the first game of the 2011 season.

Even with a 16-15 win over the Regina Rams last week, the Huskies are still trying to find their offensive rhythm. Huskie quarterbacks Trent Peterson and Jahlani Gilbert-Knorren combined to complete 8-of-24 pass attempts for 165 yards and one interception. Peterson played the bulk of the game passing for 152 yards. The Huskies scored two touchdowns in the game – a seven-yard dash from fifth-year running back Ben Coakwell and a one-yard run by Gilbert Knorren. Fifth-year receiver Rory Kohlert was the main passing target with 95 yards in the game.

Defensively, the Huskies remained solid holding Regina to one offensive touchdown. Fifth-year linebacker Tom Lynch led the Huskies in the game with 10.5 tackles and one sack. Fellow fifth-year linebacker Tony Michalchuk added 8.5 tackles to his conference-second best 46.5 total. As a team the Huskies lead the conference with 11 interceptions.

Winless the Golden Bears will look to play spoiler for the Huskies. Julian Marchand has taken the bulk of the snaps for Alberta, completing 80-of-161 passes for 946 yards with four touchdowns. He’s also threw 10 interceptions – something that could get him in trouble against the Huskies, who have snatched the most interceptions in the conference with 11.

Main targets on the Golden Bears’ receiving corps have been Porter Brown, Brad Quartel and Laine Rogers. Brown leads the team with 341 yards, while the others have combined for 537 yards. Running back K.K. Sonuga averages 77.3 yards per game for the Golden Bears.

Defensively, Jason Hetherington leads the conference with 55 tackles. He also has one sack, two interceptions and three fumble recoveries. Duncan Morris and Connor Ralph have also been strong on defense tallying 41 and 37 tackles respectively.

Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. in Edmonton. The game can be heard live on CK750 or www.ck750.com or watched on www.canadawest.tv. All fans who purchase a ticket to the football game will receive admission to the Huskie hockey game against the Golden Bears in Edmonton at Clare Drake Arena.

Source: Saskatchewan Sports Info

14:00 AT Mount Allison (0-7) at Saint Mary’s (5-2), sportstream.ca (webcast)

14:00 AT No. 9 Acadia (6-1) at StFX (2-5), EastLink (TV & webcast) / SSN (webcast)

14:00 PT No. 1 Calgary (7-0) at No. 7 UBC (5-2), Shaw (TV)

VANCOUVER – The No. 7 UBC Thunderbirds football team will try to clinch home-field advantage for the first round of the Canada West playoffs, when its hosts the No. 1-ranked Calgary Dinos on Saturday afternoon in the final game of the 2011 regular season.
 
 Kickoff at Thunderbird Stadium is scheduled for 2:07 p.m. and the game will be broadcast live on Shaw TV and CiTR 101.9 FM.
 
 UBC (5-2) is trying to clinch second place in the Canada West football standings so it can host a playoff game for the first time since 1999.  That can happen with either a UBC win or Saskatchewan loss to winless Alberta.
 
 Thunderbirds' quarterback Billy Greene (4th, Surrey, BC) continues to lead the Canada West in passing, averaging more than 300 yards per game.
 
 Greene has just four interceptions in 244 attempts and is also in the top 10 in rushing with 60 yards per game on 53 carries – the most of any quarterback in the conference.
 
 He is also closing in on the team record for most passing yards in a regular season.  Greene's 2137 yards this season is behind only Adrian Rainbow (2310 in 2005) and Jordan Gagner (2357 in 1988) for best throwing seasons in team history.
 
 Greene is also knotted with his coach (Shawn Olson, 15 TD passes in 2000) for second in TD passes in a regular season for UBC.  The Surrey native trails only Adrian Rainbow (19 in 1995).
 
 Jordan Grieve (4th, Salmon Arm, BC) has been Greene's top target and is the Thunderbirds' big-play threat, averaging nearly 20 yards per catch for 672 yards on just 34 receptions. UBC has four receivers in the top 10 in receiving yards per game, while no other team has more than two.  Last week, it was senior Mitch Shuster's (5th, Vancouver, BC) turn to shine.  He caught seven passes against Alberta for 153 yards and a touchdown.
 
 The Thunderbirds rank last in several defensive categories, including yards allowed (513.7/game) and passing yards allowed (274.7/game).
 
 But the defence also has a knack for the big play.
 
 UBC leads the conference with 11 interceptions, with two of them returned for touchdowns.
 
 Connor Flynn (5th, Vancouver, BC) and Serge Kaminsky (5th, Richmond, BC) lead the conference with six and five sacks on the season, respectively.
 
 Defensive back Chris Mark (5th, Surrey, BC) was last week's conference player of the week on defence, recording eight tackles and a 55-yard interception return touchdown as the Thunderbirds.  It was the second week in a row a UBC player won the defensive award.
 
 Flynn, Kaminsky and Mark are among the fifth-year players who will be playing in their last regular season games at Thunderbird Stadium on Saturday.  The others include Shuster, Dave Boyd (Duncan, BC), Levar Hayden (Burnaby, BC), Devin Kavanagh (Montreal, QC), Sam Carino (Burnaby, BC) and Jordy Kyle (Regina, SK).
 
Kicker Billy Pavlopoulos (3rd, Georgetown, ON) was named the conference's special teams player of the week.
 
The Calgary Dinos have already clinched first place in the regular season standings as well as home field advantage leading up the Vanier Cup.
 
 But there will still be plenty of motivation for Calgary in Saturday's game.
 
 The team will try to complete a perfect 8-0 regular season for the first time in the school's 47 years of football.
 
 Head coach Blake Nill celebrated his 100th CIS victory last week with a 41-24 defeat of Manitoba at McMahon Stadium to clinch first place. As has been the story throughout the season, it happened with the run game – this time sparked by Matt Walter's 141-yard performance. It moved Walter to within just 14 yards of 4,000 on his career – a milestone just eight other CIS players have reached.
 
 Calgary's offence is averaging nearly 510 total yards, 39 points, and 276 rushing yards per game on the season – easily the best totals in the conference in all three areas. But the Dinos' defence has also stepped up – Calgary leads Canada West in points allowed (17.1/game), total yards allowed (308.7), rushing yards (118.6), passing yards (190.1), and sacks (19). The Dinos boast a +14 turnover margin – six better than second-place UBC – and have held opponents to just 16.7 first downs per game. They'll have their hands full with UBC quarterback Greene, however, who's widely considered the likely Canada West nominee for the Hec Crighton trophy.
 
 Offensively, Lumbala's 817 yards has him just one off Regina's Adrian Charles for the conference's rushing lead, and he'll look to leapfrog Charles against the UBC run defence, which has allowed almost 240 yards per game. That total against the Dinos back in Week 2 was 351 yards, 204 of which came courtesy Lumbala.
 
 Kicker Johnny Mark has been an impressive success story for the Dinos in 2011 as well. The 19-year-old redshirt freshman has missed just one of his 18 field goal tries on the year for an impressive 94.4 per cent success rate, and he enters the last week of the season just one field goal away from tying Aaron Ifield's single-season school record of 18 – which he set last season.
 
 UBC and Calgary met in the second week of the regular season, with the Dinos coming out on top 30-25.
 
 But it took an 85-yard drive in the waning moments of the game, completed with a Steven Lumbala touchdown, for the Dinos to finally take the win.
 
 Lumbala had 80 of the 85 yards on that game-winning drive as the Dinos ran the ball on every play.

Source:

UBC Sports Info
  
 - with files from Ben Matchett (Calgary Assistant Athletic Director)