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| Noah Picton, left, sets up to fire a pass downfield for the Rams. |
Judging by the pre-season Canada West Conference coaches’
poll, Saskatchewan’s two university football programs aren’t expected to do squat
in 2017.
On Wednesday, Canada West released the annual pre-season
coaches’ rankings for the six-team conference, and the University of Regina
Rams were rated third and the University of Saskatchewan Huskies placed fifth.
The University of Calgary Dinos topped the poll, and the University of British
Columbia Thunderbirds came in second. The University of Manitoba Bisons are
ranked fourth, while the University of Alberta Golden Bears are sixth.
At this snapshot in time, the coaches in the conference are
predicting the Dinos and Thunderbirds will square off in the Canada West final
for the third straight year and battle for the Hardy Cup. Last year, the Dinos fell in the U Sports title
game, the Vanier Cup, 31-26 to the Universite Laval Rouge et Or. In 2015, the
Thunderbirds won the Vanier Cup downing the Universite de Montreal Carabins
26-23.
While it would be natural to rank the Dinos and Thunderbirds
where they are due to recent history, the coaching staffs of the Rams and
Huskies should take full aim at playing the disrespect card.
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| Huskies QB Kyle Siemens (#19) escapes Rams DL Nicholas Dheilly (#99). |
The rankings
reinforce the notion that neither Saskatchewan university team will get to the
point where they can win the conference title.
The Rams topped the Canada West regular season standings
with a 6-2 record last season, which was a first for the program since leaving
the Canadian Junior Football League for the university ranks in 1999. They fell
in a Canada West semifinal contest 40-34 to the Thunderbirds.
U of R posted a 6-2 mark on the heels of an 0-8 campaign in
2015. The coaches’ poll is basically saying the season the Rams had in 2016
under first-year head coach Steve Bryce is an aberration. They are expected to
fall back in the Canada West pack.
So much for Rams quarterback Noah Picton becoming the first
player from his program to win the Hec Crighton Trophy as the most valuable
player for U Sports football in 2016.
The Huskies finished third in the conference with a 5-3
record last year before seeing a three game winning streak end in the other
Canada West semifinal playoff game. The Dinos thumped the Huskies in that
playoff encounter 47-17.
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| Atlee Simon (#36) motor downfield for the Rams. |
Since that time, the Huskies have undergone an overhaul in
the coaching department. Legendary head coach Brian Towriss, who will be
inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame on Sept. 14 in Hamilton, Ont.,
resigned last December.
Former Montreal Alouettes star offensive lineman Scott
Flory, who was the Huskies offensive coordinator, became the new head coach.
Former CFL quarterback Marcus Crandell was brought on as the new offensive
coordinator, former CFL linebacker and Huskies player Warren Muzika rejoined
the program as the new defensive coordinator and veteran U Sports coach Jerry
Friesen assumed the role as special teams coordinator.
The Huskies return a large chuck of their players from last
year, but the coaches’ poll says the program will take a big step backwards
under the guidance of a new sideline staff. That step backwards predicts
missing the playoffs for the first time since 2000.
The first reaction in seeing the Canada West coaches’ poll
was that both the Rams and Huskies are better than where they lined up in the
rankings.
In the inaugural U Sports top 10 football rankings voted on
by select members of the media, the Dinos are rated fourth, the Rams fifth, the
Thunderbirds are seventh, and the Bisons are 10th. The Rouge et Or
are rated first.
Anyone who has watched the Canada West Conference knows the
results can go all over the place. Teams that lose badly one week can rebound
and beat a good team the next week.
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| RB Colton Klassen, right, attacks the hole on a run for the Huskies. |
The Thunderbirds can always be viewed as a favourite due to
the fact Blake Nill is that team’s head coach. Nill guided the Thunderbirds to
the 2015 Vanier Cup title win, and before joining UBC before the start of the
2015 campaign, he was the head coach of the Dinos when they won six straight
Canada West titles from 2008 to 2013.
Going into the current season, the Rams and Huskies are in
position where they have nothing to lose and everything to gain. They are both
capable of having outstanding campaigns.
Both teams open their respective regular seasons on Friday.
The Rams host the Thunderbirds at 7 p.m. at new Mosaic Stadium, and the Huskies
travel to Winnipeg to face the Bisons at 7 p.m. local time at Investors Group
Field.
At this point in time, both the Rams and Huskies have been
slighted. Here is hoping they will go out and earn a new sense of respect.
Canada West football back on television
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| The Huskies O-line lines up against the Dinos D-line last season. |
After being dropped by Shaw following last season, Canada
West football will be back on television for anyone that gets SaskTel maxTV in
Saskatchewan and Telus Optik TV in Alberta and British Columbia.
Canada West announced the TV developments for the 2017
season on Wednesday. A total of 12 regular season games and all three
conference playoff games will air on the SaskTel and Telus cable brands.
Every regular season game will feature at least one of
Saskatchewan’s two university teams. The Rams will appear on television at
least seven times, while the Huskies will be on at least six times.
“Canada West is thrilled to showcase our outstanding
football student-athletes across Western Canada on our new distribution
network,” said Canada West VP of marketing and communications Adrienne Healey
in a release.
“University football provides a highly entertaining product for
our fans, who appreciate the hard work it takes for our student-athletes to
excel on the field and in the classroom. We look forward to highlighting the
abilities of our players, who go on to become pros both on the gridiron and in
their communities.”
Healey doubles as the athlete services officer at the U of
Saskatchewan.
Kudos needs to be given to those in Canada West marketing
arm for finding a new television home for the conference’s football games. It
will be interesting to see if this will cause some to switch their cable
provider.
If you have any
comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them
to stankssports@gmail.com.
