Laval at Calgary, Friday at 7:30 p.m. MST (TSN, QR77)
CALGARY – In 1956, Calgary and Quebec City signed a ‘Sister City’ agreement to promote cultural and commercial ties between the two centres. More than 50 years later, that arrangement might be most personified by a sporting rivalry between each city’s major university – the University of Calgary Dinos and the Université Laval Rouge et Or on the football field.
For the last three years, the Dinos’ season has come to an end on the turf at TELUS-Université Laval Stadium. Twice – the 2008 Uteck Bowl and the 2010 Vanier Cup – it was at the hands of the Rouge et Or, with the 2009 Vanier Cup loss to Queen’s sandwiched in between. In 2011, the two teams will meet once more – this time, in the Mitchell Bowl at McMahon Stadium in Calgary, where the Dinos hope to avenge their previous two losses and accomplish something that even Laval has never done: qualify for a third consecutive Vanier Cup.
Kickoff goes at 7:30 p.m. MT, live nationwide on TSN and RDS along with QR77 radio, from McMahon Stadium. Fans are encouraged to dress warmly.
Fans with any 2011 Calgary Stampeders ticket will be admitted to the stadium at no charge, and high school or community football players wearing team gear or showing ID will also receive free admission. University of Calgary students are encouraged to attend a pep rally for the team in the MacEwan Student Centre at 2:30 p.m. Friday, with bus transportation provided from the Den to McMahon Stadium beginning at 6 p.m.
History might be on Calgary’s side – Laval has lost its last three Bowl games on the road, while the Dinos are 3-0 all-time at home in semi-final games, including last year’s Mitchell Bowl win over Saint Mary’s. Not since 1973 has a Canada West team lost a Bowl game on its home turf – but not many of those games were played between the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the nation, as Friday night’s contest will be. You might call it Canada’s version of Alabama-LSU.
It’s also a rare occurrence that the two teams who competed for the Vanier Cup meet in a semi-final game a year later. The last time it happened was 2005, also in the Mitchell Bowl – when the Saskatchewan Huskies avenged their 2004 Vanier Cup loss with a 29-27 win over the Rouge et Or at Griffiths Stadium in Saskatoon.
No. 1 vs. No. 2, live coast-to-coast on TSN and RDS, for a chance to head to the Vanier Cup. It’s as good as it gets in CIS football – and here’s a look at the two combatants:
#2 Calgary Dinos (9-1)
Last week: defeated UBC 62-13
The Dinos won their fourth straight Canada West title last week with a 62-13 whitewash of the UBC Thunderbirds in what might have been the team’s best complete performance in years. Offensively, the Dinos were able to ride their run game to another output of more than 500 yards, while the Calgary defence held Hec Crighton nominee Billy Greene to just 175 passing yards and, perhaps more importantly, picked him off three times – one fewer than his entire season total. In all, the Dinos gave up just 335 yards in total offence to the Thunderbirds.
Quarterback Eric Dzwilewski was named the CIS offensive player of the week after becoming the first quarterback in CIS history to run for four touchdowns in a playoff game. The sophomore pivot, last season’s CIS rookie of the year, ran for 101 yards while completing nine of 13 passes for 112 yards and a touchdown as the Dinos put the boots to the Thunderbirds, the only team that has beaten them this year.
Defensively, the Dinos combined to intercept UBC quarterbacks four times (Greene three times and backup Carson Williams once), returning two of those to the end zone in a 35-point fourth quarter. Another pick by Chudi Nzekwu in the end zone, late in the third quarter, snuffed out a promising UBC drive and was really the play that salted the game away for the Dinos. And while the secondary did its job, the front seven was in Greene’s face all night, sacking him three times and generally making his life uncomfortable.
Against the Rouge et Or, the Dinos will need a repeat performance on all fronts. The Dinos’ running game, which will again be the focus this week, is up against the stingiest run defence in the nation. It’ll be strength against strength – the Dinos’ 234.2 yards-per-game rushing average (second-best in CIS) against Laval’s run defence that allowed just 53.7 yards per game during the regular season.
The Dinos are 16-2 all-time at McMahon Stadium in postseason games and are hosting a team based in Quebec for the first time in history.
Win or lose, Friday night’s contest will be the final home game for several fifth-year seniors including running backs Matt Walter and Anthony Woodson, defensive backs Chudi Nzekwu and Michael Lau, and defensive lineman Kyle Carbert.
#1 Laval Rouge et Or (10-1)
Last week: defeated Montreal 30-7
As has been well-documented, the Rouge et Or is a powerhouse program that has won six Vanier Cups in the past 12 seasons and is looking to repeat as national champs after their 29-2 win over the Dinos last year in Quebec City.
Friday night’s game will mark the furthest from home the Rouge et Or has ever played, beating the old record of Saskatoon in 2005 (Mitchell Bowl) and 2006 (Vanier Cup). And they’ll be looking for the chance to play even further from home with a trip to the Vanier Cup in Vancouver.
Laval rolled through another season in the RSEQ, winning their ninth straight title with a 30-7 win over the Danny Maciocia-led Montreal Carabins last week in Quebec City. Like Calgary and UBC, it was the Carabins that handed the Rouge et Or their only loss of the season – a 17-12 setback Oct. 8 at CEPSUM in Montreal. Outside that game, however, Laval has outscored its opponents 346-105 on the season, with more than a quarter of those points given up in one game at Sherbrooke – a 40-27 Laval victory.
The offence is led by a trio of fifth-year seniors who have one last chance to add another Vanier Cup ring. Quarterback Bruno Prud’homme, running back Sébastien Lévesque, and wide receiver Julian Feoli-Gudino were all RSEQ all-stars at their positions. An explosive back who hits holes quickly and is difficult to bring down, Lévesque carried the ball 30 times for 168 yards in the Vanier Cup last year against the Dinos and finished second in the nation with a 117.7 yards-per-game average – nearly eight yards per carry. Prud’homme was efficient if not spectacular under centre this season, completing an impressive 65 per cent of his passes for an average of just under 214 yards per game, while Feoli-Gudino was their leading receiver with 526 yards over eight games on the season.
It is on the defensive side of the football, however, that Laval has built its dynasty. The Rouge et Or finished first in the nation in points allowed (12/game), and run defence (53.7 yards/game) and second in total defence (286.2 yards/game). A star-studded defensive line-up includes Quebec’s nominee for the J.P. Metras trophy as the outstanding down lineman in CIS football, defensive end Arnaud Gascon-Nadon. A third-year transfer from Rice University, Gascon-Nadon recorded seven sacks on the season, fourth-best in Canada, and anchored a defensive line that stuffed the run all year long.
Other RSEQ all-stars on defence for Laval include defensive tackle Jean-Alexandre Bernier, corner Dominique Noël, and free safety Jonathan Laliberté.