THIS GAME: UBC at Calgary, Sat., Oct. 2,12:00 p.m., McMahon Stadium Stadium
A LOOK AT THE T-BIRDS
After a close loss in week one and a win over #2 Saskatchewan in week two, the Thunderbirds have struggled to find their rhythm, losing their last two meetings, both at home. UBC has been held without a touchdown for six consecutive quarters of football and will need to establish their offence early against the Dinos.
Complicating that endeavor is the absence of a key figure on offence – all-star running back
Dave Boyd. In last week's loss to Regina, the 'Birds had trouble rushing the ball without a serious threat at running back. Even swift-footed quarterback
Billy Greene was held in check with one of his least prolific rushing games of the year.
Of further concern is the health of the T-Birds' defence. Standout linebacker
Nathan Kanya is unlikely to play in Calgary, and fellow linebacker
Devin Kavanagh saw limited action last week due to injury. Head coach
Shawn Olson also reported post-game that linebacker
Mark Bailey, the team leader in tackles, was banged up with
Chris Mark, who leads UBC in interceptions, and Justin Williams, UBC's run stuffing defensive tackle, also questionable for Saturday.
Bright spots for the 'Birds include the receiving corps, who have shown game-breaking ability this season.
Spencer Betts leads the Blue and Gold with 19 catches for 310 yards and four touchdowns, while
Victor Marshall has consistently proven to be a downfield threat.
Marc McVeigh had a big game against Manitoba, while
Mitch Shuster has consistently shown up and made plays through the first four weeks of the season.
A LOOK AT THE DINOS
Calgary has Canada West's best rushing game, averaging over 230 yards per game and having racked up 935 total yards in four games. That's 257 more yards than the second best team.
Last week three players – running backs Matt Walter and Steven Lumbala, along with quarterback Eric Dzwilewski – ran for over 100 yards. The Dinos will test UBC's ailing front seven come Saturday.
By contrast, the Dinos rank last in passing offence due to the abscence of 2009 Hec Creighton winner Erik Glavic who is still sidelined with a knee injury. Calgary had passed for a conference low 719 yards compared to 1072 for UBC. The Dinos also rank last in completions with 47 and passing percentage at 50.0%.
And while their run defence has been adequate, Calgary's pass defence has allowed more yards than any other team in Canada West.
Opponents aside, the Dinos have been their own worst enemy at times this year. They are the most penalized team in Canada West, averaging 134 yards in penalties per game.
On the defensive side of the ball, the Dinos are led by defensive backs Tye Noble and Sam Hurl. Noble leads the team, averaging six tackles per game, while Hurl is close behind, averaging 5.4 tackles per game to go with his pair of sacks on the season.
On special teams, Calgary kicker Aaron Ifield leads Canada West with both nine field goals and a 90% success rate.
HEAD-TO-HEAD
Calgary has beaten UBC in each of their last four meetings. The 'Birds last defeated the Dinos in the 2006 season opener by a final score of 22-16.
Last year's match-up was a convincing 50-26 win for the Dinos, in which Ifield kicked five field goals, including a 45-yarder.
Overall, the T-Birds are 2-8 in their last ten meetings with Calgary.
COACH OLSON ON...
Dealing with key injuries:
“We have some plans for the University of Calgary, but part of that ties into our personnel and we've been hit with the injury bug a bit - key guys who are veterans and emotional leaders. We'll factor that into a game plan that can attack the weak spots on Calgary's team. We try prepare the same way – up tempo and confident. We're a skeleton crew compared to what we started the season with but that's an opportunity for some young guys to step up.”
The key to turning things around:
“Success breeds success. If we have a little success early in the game, we can build on that. We need to come out and not worry about the things we can't control. The guys we bring to Calgary will just have to execute and give it everything they've got. If we do that, we'll be okay. You never know how things will work out scoreboard wise, there's a lot of factors that come into it. But the standard we're trying to set is effort, caring and work. Generally if you take care of those things, the scoreboard takes care of itself.”
SHRUM BOWL 33
Despite SFU's move to NCAA Division II, the biggest football rivalry game in the lower mainland is still on. UBC hosts Shrum this year on Friday, October 8 with Canadian rules the name of the game. Tickets are available for $15 or as part of a T-Bird football season's pass ($25).
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