It's as simple a concept as there is in sports for the UBC Thunderbirds as they host the Alberta Golden Bears for their final home matchup of the regular season Saturday, October 20th: a win clinches a playoff berth.
The No. 10 T-Birds (3-3) come into week seven with some positive momentum and a chance to get back above .500. A victory would not only clinch a postseason spot for the fourth consecutive year, but it would move the 'Birds closer to a home date for the Hardy Cup semifinals.
It's not an easy task, however, as UBC takes on a desperate Bears (2-2) squad with their lives essentially on the line. A loss would not officially eliminate Alberta from playoff contention, but it would be a significant blow to their postseason chances.
Alberta posted their first win of the season against the T-Birds three weeks ago by way of a 26-21 final which adds even more fuel to a key late-season matchup with plenty on the line.
Kickoff for the T-Birds' Spirit Game is set for 1:00 p.m. PT at Thunderbird Stadium.
Last Action
The T-Birds posted their first win in over a month last Friday with a 20-10 decision over the visiting Huskies. UBC used a tremendous defensive effort with four interceptions to give themselves solid field position while
Michael O'Connor threw for 276 yards and two touchdowns.
Alberta dropped a 32-17 decision to the Rams in Regina last Friday. The Rams made good on four field goals while Seb Britton passed for two touchdowns and ran another in himself.
By the Numbers
10 – O'Connor and the T-Birds offence really spread the ball around through the air last week with 10 different receivers with at least one catch.
396 – The T-Birds have been making opponents pay when they force a punt racking up 396 total punt return yards on the season, the most in the Canada West. The 'Birds also boast an average kickoff return of 20.8 yards while
Trivel Pinto leads the conference with an average of 24.8.
Players to Watch
Trivel Pinto (#1, REC) – The veteran receiver earned Canada West special teams player of the week for his performance against the Huskies with 178 total return yards. He racked up 285 all purpose yards including an 11-yard touchdown reception. Pinto is averaging 106.4 yards receiving per game, second in the conference.
Jaxon Ciraolo-Brown (#22, DB) – The rookie defensive back had a standout performance last week with 5.5 tackles and his first Canada West interception which he returned back 25 yards.
Coach's Take
Looking back on the T-Birds' loss in Alberta three weeks ago, UBC head coach
Blake Nill admits his squad was outworked, something that simply needs to be different this go around.
"We were beat by a team that was hungrier than us and better prepared than we were and quite frankly played a more physical brand of football than we did," said Nill who can clinch a fourth consecutive playoff spot with UBC this week. "We need to match their physicality. We haven't played with enough consistency yet to look too far into the future. We just need to continue to prepare, work hard on the field, make sure we're mentally ready to go and then go out and get the job done."
Last week's win against the Huskies was critical not only for the standings but also for confidence for the T-Birds as a group moving forward.
"We have to have a belief that we'll win no matter what," added Nill. "You're not always going to play the way you want, every team in this conference is a very good football team. Ultimately if you just believe you will have success, that will help us in that regard and we just have to keep building on that."
