Bob Frid/UBC Thunderbirds photo
It’s finally coast-to-coast playoff time in university football; regular-season campaigns wrapped up in Atlantic Canada, Western Canada and Quebec this weekend, while Ontario got a head-start on post-season action.
The playoffs are already underway in Ontario, where the #8 Carleton Ravens (30-25 vs. McMaster) and #7 Guelph Gryphons (45-34 vs. Waterloo) earned Quarter-Final victories and will now face tough away tests against #1 Western and #5 Ottawa respectively.
Those are some heavy-duty matchups — especially Ottawa-Guelph, two teams which played to a 12-10 Gee-Gees win back in early September — and should get a lot of eye balls this coming weekend.
Outside Ontario, the other three conferences wrapped up their regular-season schedules.
The biggest surprise of the AUS conference season to-date went down in Wolfville, N.S., where the Acadia Axemen thrashed the previously-undefeated #6 Saint Mary’s Huskies 31-2; Axemen running back Dale Wright racked up 182 rush yards and a pair of touchdowns in the win for Acadia, which will now face a trip to St. FX in the conference Semi-Final.
Against all odds, the Sherbrooke Vert & Or found a way to sneak into the playoffs after beginning the RSEQ season 0-5 thanks to a 28-21 win over Concordia this week.
Sherbrooke’s 28 points were a season high, and more than the team had accumulated in its previous four games combined (27); with a Semi-Final visit to undefeated #2 Laval looming, it’s highly unlikely the Vert & Or will be playing past this weekend.
In the Canada West conference, the UBC Thunderbirds reversed an 18-point halftime deficit to beat Manitoba — on the road, no less — 38-34 in overtime; the win propelled Blake Nill’s team into a home playoff spot at 5-3, something that seemed unlikely a month ago. That the T-Birds turned their season around after a 2-3 start that included a shock loss at last-place Alberta deserves applause.
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Argos receiver Anthony Coombs continues to hold the lead in #UniversityBlitz as we enter the university football post-season.
Week 10 Scores
Saskatchewan 57, Regina 14
Mt. Allison 15, St. FX 38
#6 Saint Mary’s 2, Acadia 31
#4 Montreal 16, McGill 0
Concordia 21, Sherbrooke 28
#3 Calgary 52, Alberta 6
#10 UBC 38, Manitoba 34 (OT)
