REGINA, Sask. - The No. 8-ranked University of Regina Rams clinched a postseason berth and the right to host a Canada West semifinal game after outlasting the UBC Thunderbirds for a 35-33 win on Friday night at Mosaic Stadium.
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After increasing their lead to nine points with a late 70-yard touchdown pass from Noah Picton to Mitchell Picton with 1:36 left, the Rams (5-2) surrendered a major to UBC just 56 seconds later after the Thunderbirds went on an eight-play, 79-yard scoring drive, capped by
Michael O'Connor's 9 yard touchdown strike to
Will Watson. UBC attempted an onside kick, but the ball was recovered by the Rams, and the game was sealed.
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Noah Picton was 29-for-40 in the win, giving him 197 completions for the year. That breaks the Canada West single-season completions record, which was originally set at 182 by former Rams quarterback Marc Mueller in 2010 and matched last year by Saskatchewan's Drew Burko.
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O'Connor was 28-for-47 for UBC, finishing with 364 passing yards and a pair of touchdown passes to
Will Watson. The second-year pivot finished the game with 182 completions in the 2016 season, breaking Billy Greene's school record of 171 set in 2011. Watson had a total of 88 yards off a game-high total of eight catches, none more impressive than a one-handed catch in the end zone for the first of his two scores.
Ben Cummings rushed 19 times for 129 yards.
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Riley Jones led UBC's defence with four tackles for loss, while
Tanner Friesen had a 56-yard pick six late in the fourth.
Evan Horton had two key fumble recoveries on special teams for UBC, first on a fumbled kickoff return in the third and again in the fourth on a fumbled punt return.
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UBC (3-4) will host Canada West-leading Calgary (5-1) in a game they may need to win in order to qualify for the conference playoffs. That game is set for Saturday night with a 5:00 PDT kickoff.
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