There's no bigger game all year than Homecoming and UBC Football has never been hungrier for a win as the Calgary Dinos head into town for Friday night's battle at Thunderbird Stadium.
The first time the Dinos (2-1) have been UBC's Homecoming opponent since 2019, this year's rendition of the biggest campus game of the year has massive consequences for both teams who have been heading in opposite directions the last two weeks.
Calgary's confidence is riding high after back-to-back wins over the Bisons and Golden Bears, the Dinos now sitting alone in third place in the Canada West.
The T-Birds (1-2) have dropped each of their last two contests, including a 37-20 defeat at the hands of the undefeated Regina Rams last Friday. A UBC Homecoming win would both even things up in the standings while keeping the T-Birds in the playoff race and provide a much needed change of course.
"This is a playoff game for us, we recognize that," said UBC head coach,
Blake Nill, after his team's second straight 1-2 start to the season. "We're in the situation we are, we just need to find a way to play our best and be at our best when six o'clock Friday rolls around."
Offensively, the T-Birds have proven they have the tools to produce what's needed to succeed in the Canada West, certainly when it comes to the passing game. Between
Derek Engel and
Drew Viotto who have both played significant time at quarterback, UBC has put up the second most passing yards in the conference while
Shemar McBean (280) and
Trey Montour (260) remain among the top five receivers.
Defensively, the 'Birds know they need to beef up their run defence in particular having allowed more than 200 yards per game on average.
"We just got to play more consistent," Nill said. "Like all teams that have an element of youth as we do, we got to…coach the kids up and find a way for them to make more sound, improved plays. That's what we're focussing on this week, just trying to be a little bit better in hopes it impacts the scoreboard when we play Calgary."
The Dinos have put up the conference's lowest totals in both passing yards (615) and total offence through three weeks, averaging just 364 yards per game. But they've managed to come up big at the most important moments in each of their two wins.
"I appreciate that about them. Finding a way to win is part of taking the next step forward. They don't have to worry about us being over-confident or being underprepared, we realize the kind of program that we're about to face and we're going to prepare our best to make sure that we compete to our fullest capability."
With a packed house of 7500 expected for Homecoming Friday night, the T-Birds are keen to ensure the many fans and community supporters go away happy, and none more so than the alumni.
"As most of my athletes will tell you, we play the game for the program and for those who wore the uniform in the past. This is a big opportunity for us to showcase UBC Football to people who played over the decades."
This week marks the first meeting between the two rivals since the T-Birds posted a 21-5 week seven win over Calgary last season. UBC has won five of their last six battles with the Dinos, but none have had as important an outcome as what this week presents.
Homecoming 2025 – presented by FIZZ Mobile – will kickoff at 6:00 p.m. Friday, September 19 at Thunderbird Stadium. A limited number of tickets are still available
HERE and the game will also be streamed live on
Canada West TV.
