WINNIPEG - On Saturday at Canad Inns Stadium in front of a hearty 1750 fans, the No. 3-ranked Manitoba Bisons football defeated the No. 6 Regina Rams by a 48-5 score in the 71st Canada West final (Hardy Cup) game.
The Bisons advance to the Mitchell Bowl (CIS Semi-Final) for the first time since 2001 and second time in 34 years (1973). With the victory, Manitoba captured their tenth Hardy Cup titleand will now host the No. 10 Western Ontario Mustangs (7-4) next weekend. The Herd extended their winning streak in 2007 to 10 consecutive wins.
Manitoba offence found their footing early in the second quarter and the Bisons defence went another final game with giving up a touchdown. After a 5-0 first quarter lead for Regina, the Bisons took advantage of the wind and scored six times and accumulated 26 consecutive points in the second quarter. Kicker Scott Dixon nailed four field goals (one from 45 yards, which was the second longest in team playoff history) and QB John Makie found WR Terry Firr in the end zone on 25 and 32 yard TD passes. Coupled with the offensive burst, Manitoba held Regina only to 19 yards of offence in the second quarter. Overall in the game, the Bisons limited Regina to a field goal (and gave up a safety) and have not allowed a touchdown in over three-and-half games – a total of 210:37.
“Wow. If you have told me we would have held Regina to under 200 total yards, I’m not sure I would have believe it,” commented Bison football head coach Brian Dobie. "I am really proud of our total, team effort throughout the game and was happy with the way we played on both sides of the ball. We will enjoy this tonight and then get back to the work in hand and prepare for Western.”
At the half, Manitoba led 26-5. The stats were just about even but the Bisons capitalized on a short field with the wind at their backs and did not have any drive longer than two minutes in the second quarter. The Rams tried to generate some much needed offence in the second half but were stymied by the Bisons’ defence who knocked down passes and stuffed the run for the majority of the game. Manitoba ended the game with a two yard pass to 2007 Canada West Outstanding Lineman Justin Cooper and a 13 yard run by RB Matt Henry to cap the scoring. Regina did not score for the remaining 45:24 of the game.
Regina had six turnovers (three interceptions, one fumble and two turnover on downs) during the game. Manitoba led in offence by racking up 462 to 169 yards and limited the Rams passing game to only 168 yards.
For Manitoba, Makie went 18-25 passing for 3 TDs and 253 yards. Simon Blaszczak had six grabs for 59 yards while Firr had five catches for 98 yards and 2 TDs. Henry led the team with 113 yards on 13 carries (8.7 avg.) and RB Karim Lowen had 92 yards on 18 carries. On defence, Mike Howard and Erik Gustafson had team-high five tackles while Bob Reist snagged three interceptions and Justin Shaw had three sacks.
For the Rams, QB Teale Orban was 19-38 passing for 168 yards and 3 INTs. WR Chad Goldie had 52 yards on six catches while RB Derek Belvedere was top rusher with 18 yards on seven carries. On defence, Steve Wilson had a game-high 11 tackles (five for losses) and two sacks while Brandon Ganne had seven tackles and one forced fumble.
Manitoba (10-0) and Western Ontario (7-4) face off in the Mitchell Bowl (CIS semifinal) on Saturday, Nov. 17, 3 p.m. CT at Canad Inns Stadium.