Huskie Tidbits

I haven’t updated my blog in a while so here some items from the past week.

* Huskies have the longest winning streak going into the playoffs at 5. No other team has won more than their last 2 games.
* Rams head coach Frank McCrystal told me on the pre-game show that he’s never really cared much for the city of Saskatoon or its attractions.
* Thought it was interesting that the Rams were waiting for the Huskies at the 40 yard line as the Dogs ran made their appearance on the field. A number of Rams players stood in front of the Huskie players who were running down the field. If it was meant to throw the Huskies off their game at the start, it didn’t work. They were as fired up as ever.
* Laurence Nixon moved into 2nd place all-time on the Huskies list for pass completions and passing yards. He passed Brent Schneider and finishes his regular season career just 1 completion shy of the record held by Doug Siemens (536). He passed Siemens in passing yards and only Brent Schneider has more yards in the history of the team.
* Nixon was named Canada West and CIS Athlete of the Week for offence.
* In the last 17 games between Saskatchewan and Alberta, the Dogs have won 13.
* If the Huskies keep winning, they can play up to 4 home games in a row. (1 regular season and 3 playoff games).
* Huskies ended the season with the most points scored (35.9 per game) and least points allowed (18.5 per game)
* After a slow start, Stephen McDonald has hit his last 11 field goal attempts and the Huskies as a team have hit their last 12.
* Saturday will be the Huskies first afternoon game of the year, this will be Alberta’s 7th.

The game can be heard on Ck750, www.ck750.com and we’re now available on Sasktel Max as well. Pre-game show with Kelly and myself is 12:30, play by ay at 1:00.

Huskies Ranked #3

The U of S Huskies have been slowly climbing up the standings and the national rankings over the past month. The Dogs have won 4 straight and are tied for 1st in the Canada West standings with Regina and Calgary. Saskatchewan’s 30-9 win on Friday night in UBC has helped them jump to the #3 spot in Canada this week, up 1 spot from last week. They jumped over the Regina Rams who lost to Calgary which sets up a great match up this weekend. Calgary is ranked 5th and Regina 6th but all 3 teams can still finish first heading into this weekend’s final games. The Green & White are now the hottest team in Canada West after starting the season 1-2. Here is the Top 10:

                                                Pts (1^st place)  Last week

 

1. Laval (8-0)               500 (43)           1
2. Western (7-1)           433                  2
3. Saskatchewan (5-2) 370                  4

4. Ottawa (7-1)            339                  5
5. Calgary (5-2)           320                  7
6. Regina (5-2)             237                  3

7. McMaster (6-2)        201                  8

8. Montreal (5-3)         129                  6

9. Saint Mary’s (4-3)    87                    10

10. Sherbrooke (4-4)   53                    NR

Dog Pound

Here is tomorrow morning’s Dog Pound which can be heard after the 8:00 sports on both stations.

Dog Pound

There is no doubt that both sides will be saying that there are no hard feelings and that the past is in the past. However, I think we all know that no one ever forgets. The Huskies and Dino’s really don’t like each other. I read an article in the paper that Dino’s coach Blake Nill hasn’t been accepting interviews this week. The game is paramount for both of these teams so I would expect a disciplined but highly intesified contest. Expect both coaches to downplay all the hoopla and stick to talking about the game. It will be a great night and a huge crowd should be on hand to help the Dogs. Calgary is 4-1 and ranked #2 while the Huskies are 3-2 and ranked 8th in the country. The pre-game show starts on CK750 at 6:30 with the kick off at 7.

Huskies Still Ranked 8th

The University of Saskatchewan Huskies remain ranked 8th in the country according to today’s CIS football rankings. In fact, there was no change through the top 9 teams. The Huskies, along with the rest of the Canada West Conference had the week off. Laval is #1, Calgary #2 and Western is still 3rd. The only change in the Top 10 was Acadia moving up to 10th after not being ranked last week.

I’m Back

Sorry, I have heard from just about everyone on me not posting on my blog the past couple of weeks. I had some personal issues to take care of but things should be back to normal as of today. There was no Mustang Report yesterday to post because of the holiday and the Huskies had a bye this weekend. The Broncos looked good in their 5-1 win over Nipawin on Sunday. The Hawks, not so much. Both the Hawks and Broncos have home games tonight. Darrell Mann let his players go home for a few days since they have a week off in between games. The Huskies used their bye week to get healthier and they’ll need to be. They take on the top team in the Canada West on Friday as the Calgary Dinos visit.

Friday’s Dog Pound

I’m looking forward to tomorrow’s football game at Griffiths. This will be the first time I’ve called a game involving the Bisons in Saskatoon. It’s been 4 years since they’ve been here. Hopefully the Dogs can pick up right where they left off in their last game. They’re still banged up but should be ok. Next week is the bye week which should only benefit them. Here is the Dog Pound feature with B.T.  that witll be running on our stations tomorrow.

Dog Pound-Oct. 1

The pre-game show starts at 6:30 on CK750 and www.ck750.com while the play by play is at 7:00.

Nixon Named Canada West Offensive POW

U of S Huskies QB Laurence Nixon may have been playing hurt last Friday but it didn’t show. The 5th year QB went 25 of 34 passing for 423 yards and 3 touchdowns in the Dogs 33-9 victory over the Alberta Golden Bears on Friday. The Richmond, BC native leads the Canada West in passing yards per game with 271. He is also ranked 2nd in Canada West in passing efficiency. The Huskies offence also leads the conference in total offence and is 2nd in scoring.

Huskies Back In The Top 10

The University of Saskatchewan Huskies have made it back onto familiar ground as they are back in the Top 10 ranking. The Huskies looked superb in their 33-9 win over the Alberta Golden Bears last Friday. The Dogs were ranked 9th in the country after the latest poll. Here are the results:

       Pts (1^st place)  Last week

 

1. Laval (4-0)                           499 (43)           1

2. Ottawa (5-0)                        444 (1)             2

3. Montreal (4-0)                      403                  3

4. Calgary (3-1)                       323                  4

5. Western (4-1)                       293                  5

6. Regina (3-1)                         258                  6

7. McMaster (3-2)                     171                  8

8. Bishop’s (3-1)                       145                  9

9. Saskatchewan (2-2)              94                    NR

10. Guelph (3-1)                       40                    10

 

Other teams receiving votes: Alberta (23), Concordia (14), Sherbrooke (7), Acadia (3), Mount Allison (3), Wilfrid Laurier (3).

Blake Nill Gets Suspended

Calgary Dino’s head coach Blake Nill has been handed a 1-game suspension. It was over his tirade after Saskatchewan Huskies safety Bryce McCall lowered the boom on receiver Anthony Woodson a couple weeks ago in both teams season opener. Nill went onto the field and started screaming at officials as well as Huskie personnel for about 20 minutes. There was no flag on the play for the hit. Woodson layed motionless for a long period of time and was taken off the field on a stretcher. I talked to McCall about the hit and he believes it was a clean hit. The Canada West Complaints Committee agreed as they did not feel a need for discipline against the Huskies safety. Nill did eventually get a flag thrown against him during the incident. Here is a copy of the release that was sent out:

EDMONTON – The Canada West Complaints Committee has reviewed and ruled on a complaint submitted by the University ofSaskatchewan regarding the conduct of the University of Calgary’s head football coach Blake Nill during a Canada West football game played in Calgary versus the Saskatchewan Huskies on September 4, 2010. 

The Committee reviewed all submissions received from both parties, the head official of the game and actual game footage of the Shaw Television broadcast. Upon review of the submitted information, it is the opinion of the Committee that the actions of Coach Nill constitute a violation of Canada West Code of Conduct, specifically By-Law Article 8.1.3.2 Coaches Conduct, and warrant further sanction.

 

The Committee acknowledged that Coach Nill has taken responsibility for his actions and understands that he has violated Canada West Code of Conduct, but the actions warrant a further sanction for Coach Nill from CWUAA:

A one (1) game suspension to be served at the University of Calgary’s next scheduled Canada West football game.

 

As a result, Coach Nill will not be permitted to participate in the Calgary Dinos contest at the Alberta Golden Bears in Edmonton on Saturday, September 18, 2010.

 

The Committee also dealt with a second complaint concerning a hit during the game and determined that no sanctions were needed.

 

For further information, please contact Sandy Slavin, Canada West President at: (403) 329-2380

 

 

David Bandla, Communications

Canada West Athletics

www.canadawest.org

on Twitter “cwuaa”

CIS Football Rankings

The University of Saskatchewan Huskies rankings have dropped as expected after their 31-12 loss to the UBC Thunderbirds on Friday. They dropped a little lower than I expected as they went from 2nd to 6th in the nation. Laval got every 1st place vote (including mine). Here are the rankings:

   Pts (1^st place)  Last week

1. Laval (2-0)                           500 (40)           1

2. Ottawa (3-0)                        435                  3

3. Montreal (2-0)                     357                  7

4. Calgary (1-1)                       328                  5

5. Western (2-1)                       313                  8

6. Saskatchewan (1-1)             253                  2

7. Alberta (2-0)                        168                  NR

8. McMaster (2-1)                    86                    6

9. Regina (1-1)                         68                    9

10. Acadia (1-0)                      57                    NR

Huskies Fall Back To Earth

Ok, I admit it. I actually thought the U of S Hukskies were going to go 8-0 this season. I also thought the Dogs were going to blow out the UBC Thunderbirds on Friday night. I thought it was going to be ugly… something like 42-10. This is why they play the games. You can’t just show up and expect to win.

Head coach Brian Towriss stated several times after the game that they didn’t have any excuses, they didn’t show up, they didn’t execute and it was a team loss, not just one or two players. It could have been easy to say that they had 4 or 5 major injuries to key personnel but the team never mentioned it even once. They could have said the officiating was bad. There were 3 consecutive “No Yards” infractions that were missed and a qustionable “Interference” call deep in the Huskies end. B.T. never mentioned that either. That’s because the Huskies know that there weren’t many parts of their game that were good. One bright spot for the Dogs was running back Ben Coakwell who ended the game with 16 carries for 105 yards and also caught 3 passes. The fans fought the cold, the wind and rain waiting for something to cheer about. QB Trent Peterson came in to relieve Lawrence Nixon in the 3rd quarter and was sacked 3 consecutive times before finally being able to get a pass away. He did throw the only touchdown strike of the game to Mitch Stevens.

Hopefully fans aren’t too down however. By the end of the season, Saskatchewan will be at the top or near the top of the standings. It may be a good wake-up call for a very good club that they can’t take nights off. This may benefit them in the future and make them a stronger team.

Here are a couple of pictures of the Huskies coming onto the field in Friday’s game.

I’m looking forward to this Saturday’s game at Mosaic Stadium. You know the Huskies will be pumped up to rebound from last Friday. The Regina Rams look like they’re for real this year and will be a tough opponent.

It is inevitable that the Dogs will lose their #2 ranking in the country but I guess the question is how far will they fall. What I can tell you is that head coach Brian Towriss didn’t care where the media placed them before the game and he doesn’t care where they will place them this week.

Saturday’s game can be heard on CK750 and www.ck750.com starting at 6:30.

Dog Pound for Tomorrow

Here’s the Dog Pound that will air on both our stations tomorrow morning. Don’t forget that the Huskies – Thunderbirds game will be on CK750 and www.ck750.com. The pre-game show is at 6:30 and the kickoff is at 7:00.

Dog Pound – Sep. 10

Ex-Huskie Traded

Former University of Saskatchewan Huskie offensive lineman Kelly Bates is on the move again. The Saskatchewan Roughriders dealt him to the struggling Edmonton Eskimos for a selection in the 2014 CFL draft. The Humboldt native has spent the first half of the season on the 9-game injured list. Bates was originally drafted in the 4th round, 32nd overall in 2001 by BC. He has also played with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers during his CFL tenure.

Kelly has been spending time with the Huskies this season again. He did last year when he was on the Bombers injured list. Hopefully he’ll get a chance to play in Edmonton. He is a very likeable and accommodating person on both a personal and professional level. The 32 year old has played in 221 CFL games.

Huskies ranked 2nd In Nation

The U of S Huskies football team moved up 1 spot in the CIS national rankings. The Dogs are now ranked 2nd behind only Laval who took over top spot from Calgary. The Dino’s loss in Week 1 dropped them to #5 in the country. Here is the official Top 10 in Canada:

Here are the Top 10:

1- Laval
2- Saskatchewan
3- Ottawa
4- Saint Mary’s
5- Calgary
6- McMaster
7- Montreal
8- Western
9- Regina
10- Concordia

My predictions that I did in my last post were pretty close.

My CIS Top 10 Football Rankings

The deadline for media to vote was this morning at 8:00. Here is what I submitted:

1- Laval
2- Saskatchewan
3- Ottawa
4- Saint Mary’s
5- Calgary
6- Montreal
7- McMaster
8- Concordia
9- Regina
10- Western

We’ll see how the actual list looks when they are released today.