Huskies opening day implosion disappointing but just one game

The Huskies will be looking to clean up mistakes in practice.

    Well that bubble burst quickly.

    The pundits and the Canada West Conference coaches had the University of Saskatchewan Huskies football team tabbed as a powerhouse going into their regular season opener Friday against the U of Manitoba Bisons in Winnipeg, Man.

    In the initial U Sports Top 10 rankings released on Tuesday, the Huskies, who are the defending Canada West champions, were rated fourth, and they were the highest ranked team from Canada West.

    In the Canada West football pre-season coaches poll released on Wednesday, the U of Calgary Dinos were rated first, the Huskies second, the Bisons third, the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds fourth, the U of Alberta Golden Bears fifth and the U of Regina Rams sixth.

    The initial high expectations for the Huskies came crashing down to earth. Before 1,001 spectators at IG Field in Winnipeg, the Bisons claimed a 43-19 landslide victory.

    The Huskies beat themselves almost as much as the Bisons contributed to their own cause. 

Adam Machart (#20) had 93 yards rushing for the Huskies on Friday.

    U of S turned the ball over seven times including three fumbles, two interceptions and twice on downs.

    U of M didn’t have a single giveaway.

    In the second quarter, one interception and two fumbles by the Huskies were turned into 17 points by the Bisons, who held a 27-9 edge at halftime.
    From that point, the Huskies faced an uphill battle on the scoreboard, and they could never get one of those serious momentum surges that Canada West football contests are known for to get back in the game.

    The turnovers took away from the fact the Huskies were able to move the ball on offence and hold ground on defence.

    Making his first career regular season start, Huskies quarterback Mason Nyhus connected on 27-of-39 passes for 313 yards and one touchdown to go with his one interception.

    The Huskies ground game piled up 174 yards rushing. Starting running back Adam Machart ran the ball 13 times for 93 yards, and running back Josh Ewanchyna posted 66 yards rushing on eight carries scoring one touchdown.

    Ewanchyna would have had a bigger night had two monster long runs not been negated by holding penalties.

    Defensively, the Huskies held the Bisons to 359 yards of total offence with 163 yards coming through the air and 196 yards on the ground.

Mason Nyhus threw for 315 yards for the Huskies on Friday.

    Defensive end Nicholas Dheilly, defensive tackle Evan Machibroda and defensive back Nelson Lokombo all had sacks for the Huskies.

    Despite facing field position situations that favoured the Bisons offence, the Huskies defence forced their foes to attempt five field goals, which were all made by Bisons kicker Matt Riley.

    Still, Bisons starting quarterback Des Catellier was efficient for his squad completing 14-of-19 passes for 163 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions.
    The 196 yards rushing the Bisons piled up on the ground was also noticeable. The bulk of those yards came from their talented running back stable in Michael Ritchott, Victor St. Pierre-Laviolette and Logan Fischer, who all had star careers in the Canadian Junior Football League.

    With all that said, one wonders what the score would have been had the Huskies not turned over the ball. They were able to execute large parts of their game plan, but seven turnovers will always foil those plans.

    In football, it is always known that crazy and unpredictable things can happen on opening day.

    On Friday in Edmonton, Alta., the visiting Dinos led the Golden Bears 30-13 at halftime in the regular season opener for both those squads. The Dinos lead shrunk to 33-31 in the fourth quarter.

    U of C was up 34-31, when Dinos defensive back Deane Leonard intercepted Golden Bears quarterback Brad Launhardt and returned the ball 62 yards for a touchdown on the final play of the game to seal a 41-31 victory.

Head coach Scott Flory, right, will look for his Huskies to bounce back.

    If the Huskies were going to have an outing where they turned the ball over seven times, it is best to get it out of the way in Week 1. There is still a lot of time to recover.

    All the Huskies can do is focus on their next game, which is their homecoming game this coming Friday at 7 p.m. at Griffiths Stadium against the Thunderbirds.

    The Huskies can still repeat and better their special season in 2018. They were reminded the can still be humbled if their focus slips like they were in the opening loss to the Bisons.

    If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

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