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| The Huskies storm on to the turf at Griffiths Stadium. |
In an instant, that flash was gone.
Last Saturday in Vancouver, B.C., results earlier in the day
in the U Sports regular season play broke to give the Huskies a path that they
could control for first place in Canada West. First, the Huskies needed to down
the host University of British Columbia Thunderbirds.
The Huskies entered the fourth quarter holding a 37-25 lead
in that contest. The Thunderbirds rallied to pull ahead 38-37. Thunderbirds kicker
Garrin McDonnell hit a field goal from 11 yards out with 31 seconds to play to
push the host side into the lead.
U of S had a chance to pull out the win, but kicker David Solie wasn’t able to connect on a difficult field goal from 49 yards out.
U of S had a chance to pull out the win, but kicker David Solie wasn’t able to connect on a difficult field goal from 49 yards out.
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| Nixen Voll, left, makes one of his three interceptions on the season. |
With that setback, the Huskies lost control in the race for
first place. The Huskies last finished first in the Canada West standings back
in 2010 with a 6-2 record.
Still, the Huskies, who won the Canada West title last year
for the first time since 2006, haven’t made it a habit in recent years to top
the Canada West standings or make long playoff runs.
That seems to still belong to the University of Calgary
Dinos, who current top Canada West with a 5-2 record.
The Huskies in the current generation are still trying to
build a new tradition of success that can be linked to the team’s past. As a
result, there will still be bumps in the road, especially due to the fact the
Canada West Conference in football is highly competitive.
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| QB Mason Nyhus can guide the Huskies to a home playoff date. |
Currently, the Huskies, University of Alberta Golden Bears
and University of Manitoba Bisons all have 4-3 records to sit tied for second
to fourth in Canada West and all three squads will be part of the post-season.
The Huskies and Golden Bears conclude their respective
regular season campaigns playing each other on Saturday at 2 p.m. at Griffiths
Stadium in Saskatoon. The winner will lock up at least a second place finish in
Canada West and host one of the conference’s two semifinal playoff games.
Right now, that is what the Huskies can control. The Huskies
last hosted a home playoff game in 2014, when they fell to the eventual Canada
West champion Bisons 47-39.
Since finishing first in Canada West in 2010, the Huskies
have only hosted one home playoff game with that contest in 2014.
If the Huskies were given the scenario that they could host
a home playoff game if they could win their final regular season contest at the
start of the campaign, they would likely take that scenario.
U of S still has an outside shot at first place. If the
Huskies beat the Golden Bears this coming Saturday and the Dinos fall to the
Thunderbirds in Calgary this coming Saturday, the Huskies will finish first.
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| Adam Machart could break the Huskies record for rushing yards in a season. |
On an individual front, Huskies supporters will be watching
to see if star running back Adam Machart can break the Huskies record for
rushing yards in one season in the team’s final regular season game. Machart has carried the ball 127
times for 1,104 yards and eight touchdowns, and he has caught 17 passes for 158
yards and three major scores.
The team record is currently held by Doug Rozon from the
1999 campaign. That season, Rozon carried the ball 151 times for 1,267 yards
and five touchdowns.
Machart, who is just the third member of the Huskies to
eclipse 1,000 yards rushing in a season, will establish a new team record if he
runs for 164 yards against the Golden Bears.
David Stevens ran for the second most yards in one regular
season in team history carrying the ball 174 times for 1,229 yards and 12
touchdowns in 2005.
Machart would be the first to exchange any personal milestones for wins.
Machart would be the first to exchange any personal milestones for wins.
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| The Huskies can still potentially enjoy another special season. |
If the Huskies were 5-2 or 6-1, Machart would have a really
strong chance at possibly claiming the Hec Crighton Trophy as the football MVP
for U Sports. The Huskies 4-3 record does dampen the chances for possibly
winning that national award.
While the Huskies experienced a heartbreaker last Saturday
and dropped a tough to take on 19-17 to the Golden Bears in Edmonton on Sept.
21, the U of S side is still sitting in a good spot.
The Huskies still have a great opportunity in front of them
to do some special things this season.
Rams have to lament the ones that got away
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| QB Josh Donnelly (#17) and the Rams lost too many close ones. |
The Rams and the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds
will both miss the U Sports playoffs as they each currently sport 2-5 records
to sit tied for fifth and sixth in the Canada West Conference. Both teams will
play one last regular season game before their campaigns come to an end.
The Rams could have been going into the final week of
regular season play sitting in the thick of the chase for a playoff spot or the
playoff picture. They lost three of their games by a combined total of seven
points.
On Sept. 6, the Rams dropped an 18-17 heartbreaker to the
University of Alberta Golden Bears at Mosaic Stadium in Regina. On Sept. 28,
the Rams traveled to Winnipeg, Man., and fell 27-26 to the University of
Manitoba Bisons.
On Oct. 4, the Rams dropped a 33-28 decision to the
Thunderbirds at Mosaic Stadium.
Had the Rams won one of those games, they would have been
playing for a playoff berth this coming Friday, when they host the Bisons at 7 p.m.
at Leibel Field.
Had the Rams won two or all three of those close games, they
would have been sitting in a real comfortable spot.
The Rams season shows just how slim the margin is between
having a successful season to missing the post-season entirely in Canada West.
It is possible the Rams and Thunderbirds could both win
their final regular season outings and finish with 3-5 records, which can get
teams into the post-season in the majority of Canada West campaigns.
Did unexpected bye do in Thunder?
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| QB Blake Scherle (#14) and the Thunder lost out in a tight playoff game. |
The Thunder fell to the Edmonton Huskies 20-17 in a PFC
semifinal contest on Sunday at Leibel Field in Regina. With the setback, the
Thunder were eliminated from the CJFL playoffs, while the Huskies advance to
face the five-time defending CJFL champion Saskatoon Hilltops in the PFC final
this coming Sunday at 1 p.m. at Saskatoon Minor Football Field.
The clash between the Thunder and Huskies saw two clubs with
6-2 regular season records going at it. The Thunder beat the Huskies in the
only regular season encounter between the two sides 24-21 on Sept. 22 at Mosaic
Stadium in Regina.
The Thunder were supposed to host the Winnipeg Rifles in the
final regular season contest for both sides on Oct. 13 at Leibel Field. The
Rifles weren’t able to make it due to snowstorm conditions in Manitoba that
close portions of the Trans-Canada Highway.
As a result, a game cancellation couldn’t be avoided. The Thunder won that contest 1-0 via forfeit. The
Rifles were on a season ending tailspin and finished off at 1-7.
With that regular season clash cancelled, that meant the
Thunder hadn’t been in game action since dumping the Calgary Colts 37-9 on Oct.
6 at Leibel Field. At the time, that was Regina’s third straight win.
One wonders if the unexpected wait between games was enough
to throw the Thunder off in the PFC semifinal against the Huskies. The Huskies
jumped out to a 15-1 lead in the first quarter and were able to hold off the
Thunder the rest of the way.
The Huskies won the turnover battle 3-0, which also did not
aid the Thunder’s cause.
If the Thunder were able to play that last regular season
game with the Rifles, the Regina side might have had that extra polish that
could have helped them overcome the Huskies.
When the dust settled, the Thunder were forced to look
towards next year.
Fajardo signs extension with Roughriders
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| Cody Fajardo (#7) signed a contract extension with the Roughriders. |
The 27-year-old signed a two-year extension with the club
keeping him with the team through 2021. He signed a one-year contract with the
Roughriders as a free agent in February.
The Roughriders did not disclose financial terms of the
deal, but Farhan Lalji of TSN is reporting the deal is worth approximately
$450,000 per season.
A backup for three CFL seasons from 2016 to 2018 with the
Toronto Argonauts and British Columbia Lions, Fajardo has taken Rider Nation by
storm this season.
Fajardo became the Roughriders number one quarterback when
Zach Collaros, who began the campaign as the team’s starter, suffered a
concussion three plays into a 23-17 regular season opening loss to the
Tiger-Cats in Hamilton, Ont., on June 13.
With Fajardo at the controls, the Roughriders have posted an
11-5 record to sit second in the CFL’s West Division. The Calgary Stampeders
hold first place with an identical 11-5 mark due to sweeping the Roughriders in
the two head-to-head regular season games between the two sides.
The graduate of the NCAA’s University of Nevada Wolfpack
football team has put up strong numbers for the Roughriders completing 313-of-438
passes for 3,873 yards, 16 touchdowns and eight interceptions.
Fajardo is the popular and likable star quarterback the
Roughriders has been waiting for since Darian Durant was traded from the club
following the 2016 season.
It is safe to say most Roughriders fans believe the best
part of the Fajardo era is just beginning.
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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